


I Promise

by BatOutOfHellMadness



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Basically all of the USWNT, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2017-07-14
Packaged: 2018-07-16 06:20:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 53,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7255957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BatOutOfHellMadness/pseuds/BatOutOfHellMadness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ashlyn Harris a Lieutenant in Firehouse 18 wasn't expecting to fall for one of her best friend's and fellow firefighters sister. Hell she wasn't expecting to fall for anybody, she never really did feelings just a few wild nights and being basically married to her job and dog but it happened.</p><p>Ali Krieger wasn't expecting to fall for anyone, especially a woman. But after leaving Germany, where she had been working as a police women for the past three years and  leaving behind an experience that continues to haunt her it was honestly the last thing she expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Tell me what you think!  
> Is it worth continuing?

Ashlyn groaned tiredly into her pillow, swinging her tattooed arm out to feel around for the alarm clock which was to only noise that could be heard in her small apartment, it's shrill beeping always made her want to rip the cord out of the socket every morning. The blonde women loved her job but having to get up at half five after two days off always felt like a chore.

Knowing that if she didn't get up soon then she was going to be late for her shift and as Lieutenant of truck, the chief would not be happy with her considering she had to set an example for all the others. Two years ago when she'd transferred from Florida to Washington DC to work at Firehouse 18 she didn't know what to expect.

As much as she'd loved her home town and her old firehouse, the move was the best decision for her career, they had a Lieutenants spot to offer her whereas her previous firehouse had not. But she'd created a new life in DC and made some friends she knew she'd have for life.

Hearing a soft padding coming from the hallway just outside of her bedroom Ashlyn decided now was the best time to get up before Nutmeg started scratching on her door wanting food. She'd bought the energetic puppy from a kennel last year just a year after she'd moved to DC, instantly having a connection to the small husky and found his name ironic since her connection to soccer so she couldn't just leave him there. When she was working doubles he came to the firehouse with her and the rest of the guys loved him.

"Alright, alright," Ashlyn grumbled rubbing her eyes as she walked towards her bedroom door hearing Nutmeg scratch at the other side.

The knock on the apartment door a few minutes later startled Ashlyn so much she almost dropped a bag of dog food on the floor. Frowning to herself she made her way to the door of her apartment wondering exactly who it could be at twenty to six in the morning.

"Mrs. Green, do you know what time it is?" Ashlyn question as she opened her door to find her elderly neighbor stood outside in her sleepwear.

"Yes dear, I do. I knew you would be going to work soon and didn't know when you were going to be back but I hoped you would do me a favor,"

Ashlyn's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, she likes her neighbor, she's a funny woman who'd asked her to fix a few things in her apartment from time to time but she'd never turned up this early, "Sure Mrs. Green, what do you need?"

"Well, I have a hot date tonight, the first one since Bruce died and I wondered if you could let Daisy in when you came back from your shift later," She asked mentioning her black cat who like to lie on the bonnet of Ash's jeep whenever it could.

"I can do that," Ashlyn agreed before her eyebrows rose in surprise, "Wait a hot date, huh?"

"Yes dear, I'm quite excited," Mrs. Green answered leaning down to stroke Nutmeg's head who had finished his food and had come to investigate.

"Well I hope you have fun," Ashlyn smiled.

“Oh I will,” Mrs. Green replied with a wink causing Ashlyn to laugh. Even though Mrs. Green was rather elderly she still had a sense of humor and was very suggestive at times “Oh and Ashlyn. How many times have I told you to call me Betty?”

* * *

 

"What's got you in such a good mood? “Ashlyn asked Kyle as she sat down next to him in the break room of firehouse 18 that was located just outside of Washington DC’s city center.

"I can't wait for shift to be over," Kyle replied giddily practically bouncing in his seat causing both Ashlyn and Jack, who was sat across from them, to raise their eyebrows in both surprise and amusement. They were both used to Kyle’s bouncy nature but it seemed to be on another level this shift.

"You always want shift to be over Kyle, but you’re never this excited," Jack waved his arms up in the air for emphasis.

Kyle just rolled his eyes before sitting up even further in his seat, "Ali's coming back today! “He practically shouted in joy.

“Wait! Ali as in your sister Ali?” Jack wondered with a wide grin, now sitting up straight on the edge of his seat, fist pumping when Kyle nodded in confirmation sporting his own wide grin.

Ashlyn slowly lifted her spoon to her mouth careful not to spill any of her fruit loops as she watched the two in confusion. She vaguely remembers Kyle telling her about his sister. Well by vaguely she means she knows that Ali is Kyle’s sister since he talks about her quite a lot, her being in many of the stories he like to tell but she couldn’t for the life of her remember where the other Krieger sibling could be coming back from.

“Of course I mean Ali as in Ali my sister. Do I talk about any other Ali’s dumb ass?” Kyle sassed his eyebrows raised causing Jack to roll his eyes. The pair had been practically best friends for four years now. Both having come to Firehouse 18 at the same time, Ashlyn joining the house two years after them.

“You know,” Ashlyn started placing her bowl of cereal on the table in front of her, “I’ve been here for just over two years now and I’ve never once met your sister,”

Jack threw his head back in silent laughter, “Oh Ash. Once you do meet her you’ll wish you’d met her as soon as you started here. She’s hot. And by hot I mean smoking ho, no pun intended”

Kyle slouched down in his own chair with a groan, “How many time do I have to tell you, stop calling my sister hot,”

“Everyone with eyes think’s your sister is hot, I’m only pointing out the truth,” Jack huffed.

Ashlyn shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She could tell that Kyle was getting annoyed with Jack’s comments on his sister even though they were best friend Jack could be a bit of an asshole sometimes. Both of the two men who were on her truck didn’t really have filters but Jacks could be a bit more vulgar that Kyle’s about women.

Running a hand over her pulled back hair Ashlyn cleared her throat, “So where did you say she had been again?” She wondered.

Kyle sent a grateful smile towards his Lieutenant who had unknowingly saved him from snapping at Jack in annoyance. He knew that his best friend had a major crush on his little sister. “She’s been in Germany working on the police force. She got a job there three years ago and now she’s coming back to return to her old station,” He proudly stated with a grin.

“Wow, now I understand why your so excited, Germany is a long way from here,” Ash reached to pat Kyle on the shoulder, always having had a soft spot for the man. Even though saying that, she has a soft spot for all the people she works with.

“Yes I can’t wait,” Kyle practically squealed opening his mouth to say something else but getting interrupted with the intercom blazing with the announcement of a fire. It was defiantly going to be a long day.

* * *

 

 Ali rubbed at her eyes tiredly holding back a yawn. The long flight had defiantly taken its toll on her body, it didn’t help that her flight was only four hours after she had finished her final shift in Germany. She only had chance to just get her bag and go straight to the airport. Her friend Nadine was going to make sure all of her things were shipped safely due to arrive in a few weeks, for now she just had the essentials.

“Alex!” A happy voice squealed from right behind her, Ali not having any time to react before two strong muscular arms were wrapped around her and she was lifted of the floor in a hug.

“Kyle!” Ali replied in an equal amount of happiness, burrowing her face into her brother’s chest, the last time they had seen each other was when Ali had come home for Christmas and that was six months ago, “I’ve missed you,” She whispered into his chest.

Kyle smiled widely, “And I’ve missed you silly, now come on let’s get your bags. Mom and Dad only let me come and get you if I brought you straight home,” He laughed before stopping at the sight of his sister’s luggage, “I thought you were only bringing essentials!” He gestured to her various bags.

“I don’t know why you’re acting so surprised. Would you expect anything less than me,” Ali sassed with a shrug.

“Oh Al,” Kyle chucked, “It’s really good to have you back,”

* * *

 

 

“Alex!” An ecstatic voice cried as Ali found herself in another hug with who she recognized as her mother.

Ali sighed happily into her mother’s shoulder. Her and Deb had always had a strong relationship and it had only seemed to get stronger when Ali went to Germany. Deb wasn’t pleased when Ali had told her of the overseas job opportunity which she was determined to take. However, Deb did understand the reasoning behind her daughter’s choice to move to Germany for three years but it didn’t mean she was happy about it.

“I missed you so much, mom,” She whispered grasping her mom tighter in her arms, unwilling to let go.

Deb also hugging her daughter tighter tears in her eyes, to say that she wasn’t worried about her daughter would have been an understatement. Ever since Ali went back to Germany after Christmas everything had been fine for a month before Ali seemed to withdraw from her, only answering calls every few weeks compared to when they used to talk every few days. She even started withdrawing from Kyle, Deb learnt, when she questioned her son after two months of Ali’s almost nonexistent communication.

“I missed you too, honey,” Deb replied pulling back to take a good look at her daughter, Ali looked thinner than she remembered, her eye’s had lost their usual twinkle and now they just looked tired and withdrawn, her grin missing its usual crinkle.

“Are you okay?” She wondered stroking a hand down her daughters face.

Ali could see the hesitance in her mother’s eyes and knew that her mother had caught on to her emotional distress and absence of talking to her family. Now she thought about it, it wasn’t that hard not to notice. It was like she almost disappeared for weeks at a time.

“I’m fine mom, really,” Ali reassured even though as she looked around at the concerned look on all of her family’s face she knew they knew she was lying. Her happiness that she felt about seeing Kyle in the airport and being home was starting to fade.

Shrugging off all of their looks Ali moved out of her mother’s arms and straight into her father’s open ones as her squeezed her hard, whispering that her loves her into her ear.

* * *

 

Ali laid back on her childhood bed with a sigh, staring at the ceiling. She would be staying with her mom and dad for a few weeks until she could find an apartment to live in. It was going to be the first time she lived her own in America other than college and that thought excited her.

She was defiantly happy to be back in the United States, a place that could help her forget about the past year’s events in Germany, a chance to reconnect with her friends from the station, all of them still there as far as she knew from their social media.

Rubbing her hands over her face Ali rolled over to plug her phone into its charger, careful to make sure that her alarm was set for the morning, it wouldn’t be good if she was late on her first day back. After reassuring herself that she would indeed be woke up in the morning Ali rolled over in bed, cuddling up to her pillow before she finally let the tears she’s been holding in most of the day to fall.

* * *

 

“Morning!” Ashlyn called to Tobin, putting a hand over her mouth to stifle a yawn as she walked into the fire station greeting one of her close friends.

“Morning Ash!” The firefighter called back from where she was leaned against the firetruck.

“You’re here earlier than usual Tobs,” Ash smiled as she clapped the laid back girl on the arm.

Tobin chuckled slightly as she followed her lieutenant into the locker room where Ash proceeded to put her bag away and change her clothes, “Kelley was awake all night and wouldn’t stop bouncing around until we came in early,”

“Ah,” Ash started pulling her firehouse 18 t-shirt over her head as she laughed at Tobin’s predicament due to her roommate, “Hope’s back today, huh?” She referred to the other lieutenant of the house, Hope Solo, who was in charge of the squad truck.

“Broody is back?” Another voice called from the door of the locker room causing both girls to turn round to find Kyle strolling in with a grin on his face.

Tobin slapped hands with Kyle, “You know, one day she’s gonna hear you calling her that,”

“And?” Kyle scoffed. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Hope it’s just that he could be moody sometimes and so could she which meant they clashed quite a bit.

“I don’t want to be here when that happens, it will be like last year all over again,” Ashlyn laughed slamming her locker shut and sitting down on the bench to tie her boots.

Kyle huffed to himself, “I thought we weren’t going to talk about that ever again,” He whined causing the other two girls to chuckle.

“Hey,” Ashlyn remembered, “How did it go with your sister? Is she glad to be back?”

Kyle opened his mouth to reply also being in the process of changing his clothes ready for the shift to start but was cut off by Tobin, “Woah dude, Ali’s back?”

“Yeah, sorry must have forgotten to tell you,” Kyle apologized now tying his own boots.

“You should have seen him yesterday Tobs, he never shut up about her… I also think he was about to punch Jack in the face,” Ash teased with a grin, putting her hair up in a bun.

“Oh man. Is he still going on about how hot she is?” Tobin chuckled knowing how Jack could be but also knowing that Kyle’s sister was quite good looking.

Kyle groaned out loud, “He’s always had a crush on her,”

“She must be pretty good looking then if both Jack and Tobin think she’s hot,” Ashlyn laughed when Kyle’s head shot up to look at her.

“It’s the Krieger genes. But seriously Ash, not you as well, I don’t want you sleeping with my sister she’s straight!”

Ashlyn held her hands up in mock surrender trying to hide the fact that she was actually hurt by Kyle’s words. It was true that she did have a good time every once in a while but people had tended to exaggerate and that was how she earned a bit of a reputation as a player even though he close friends knew that she wasn’t. She thought Kyle being one of them would have known that too.

“Chill Krieger, I was just messing around. If I ever actually meet her, I promise I won’t sleep with her,” Ashlyn placed a hand over her heart in a cross my heart gesture, “You know I wouldn’t do that to you,” She added softly.

By now Tobin had left the locker room to track down Alex one of their paramedics leaving Kyle and Ashlyn alone since not many of the crew was in yet.

Kyle sighed, crossing his arms to lean against his locker, “I’m sorry Ash, I know you wouldn’t,” He said dejectedly.

“What’s wrong Kyle?” Ashlyn questioned at the look on his face, the usual cheerful grin had disappeared.

“It’s Alex... Ali. I don’t know what’s wrong with her, she’s not really been the same after she went back to Germany at Christmas, being withdrawn and seeing her yesterday, after her happiness started to draw back she looked so tired and sad and I didn’t know what to do!”

 Kyle could feel the tears welling up in his eyes, he had a special relationship with his sister and he hated seeing her become so distant from him. He knew it wasn’t the same but it reminded him of the times when it was him doing the withdrawing, only coming to his senses after she had nearly died because of a stupid broken leg.

“Hey man,” Ashlyn walked around the locker room bench so she could place a hand on the man’s shoulder, “I’m sure she will be okay, and if not all you can do is be there for her,”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not too sure about this chapter...  
> Thank you for all the responses! It's made my week!  
> Tell me what you think!

Ali woke up with a gasp drenched in sweat, breathing deeply as her body still trembled from the dream that has turned into a nightmare of memories. As her breathing eventually slowed to its normal pace Ali ran a hand through her tangled hair to check the time. 5:30. It was still an hour before she had to be up.

Sighing to herself Ali decided to get up and go for a run. She knows she will not be able to go back to sleep with the memories of the past few months in Germany circling through her mind rapidly, making her head hurt. Running always helped her clear her head, it was one of the things she could also do without waking her mom and dad.

Slipping out of bed she changed into her workout clothes which were at the top of her suitcase since she’d packed them last, grabbing her running shoes as she made her way to the front door, pausing as she passed the front hallway mirror. She stood there for a few minutes taking in her appearance, her eyes were sulken and sad, her face was pale and her hair was sticking out wildly in random places of her signature bun.

As she stared she reached a hand out to place it over her reflection in the mirror. This wasn’t who she was. It wasn’t what she wanted for herself. She wanted to be happy. She wanted to have fun. She wanted to be who she was before this all happened. But she couldn’t get passed it and it was all his fault.

Pulling her hand back Ali shook her head moving to slip her running shoes on, tying them tightly, as she made her way out the door and onto the familiar streets of her childhood home. Everything seemed to freeze as she started running, all she could hear was the sound of her feet pounding on the side walk, her heavy breathing and the blood pounding in her head. It made her feel free and that’s what she wanted.

Before she knew it her watch was beeping from where she had set it at a time to warn her that it was a time to probably start heading back to her parent house. Quickly switching the beeping off Ali made her way back to the house, mindful of the time knowing that she only had to be in work at half eight because she wasn’t on the early shift since it was her first day back.

“Mom!” Ali gasped in surprise as she walked into the kitchen after making her way back to the house to find her mom sat at the kitchen counter in her dressing gown, coffee in hand, “Why are you up?”

“Where have you been?” Deb asked ignoring Ali’s question, worry obvious in her eyes.

Ali furrowed her eyebrows, “For a run,” She gestured behind her as if it solidified her answer.

Deb sighed as she tightened her hands around her coffee cup, “Before half six in the morning?” She was starting to get really worried with her daughter, she knew that something was wrong. After popping in Ali’s room to check on her, as mothers do, when she went to the bathroom at around six she was surprised to find her daughters dishevelled bed empty. The only thing that didn’t make her call Ken was that for one her daughter was an adult so she could go anywhere she wanted at any time and also the fact that she is a police officer calmed her nerves.

“I-uhrm, wanted to clear my head, I couldn’t sleep. It’s probably the jet lag and time difference,” Ali lied. She didn’t like lying to her mother it made her feel guilty but she also didn’t want to tell her the truth about what happened to her, she felt ashamed and didn’t want her mother to feel that way about her as well.

“Alex…” Deb started but got cut off by Ali who was starting to feel conscious of her appearance under her mother’s concerned gaze.

“Look Mom, I’m sorry if I worried you. If I ever go out for an early morning run again, I’ll leave a note on the kitchen table so you don’t worry. I need to go shower now, don’t want to be late on my first day back do I?” Ali tried to plaster a big smile on her face even though she knew her mom saw straight through it so she didn’t wait for a reply before she turned around and headed for the shower. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel any excitement in going back to work at her old station, she knew it was a step in the right direction of her coming back to herself. What she didn’t know was whether it was going to be enough.

Stripping her clothes of once she made it into her bathroom Ali stepped under the shower spray with a sigh. Standing there on her own staring at the tiled shower wall she couldn’t help but let the memories come flooding back. Standing there alone in the shower she finally let her tears fall.

* * *

 

Standing outside, the police station at 8:20 Ali stared at the building where she had started her police career with a small fond smile. She took a deep breath as she walked into the station and towards the front desk, still in her normal clothes since she hadn’t been given her uniform yet. As she approached the desk she frowned slightly as she saw an unfamiliar face sat in a uniform looking at her nails.

“Uh Hello?” Ali cleared her throat after standing in front of the desk for a few seconds and the women not looking up from examining her nails.

“Yes?” The girl replied simply as she raised her eyebrows with a glare.

Ali was sure that she couldn’t keep her surprise of her face. She didn’t know how someone this rude and uninterested in what they were doing could be on the front desk never mind the police force. What if she was a civilian about to report a crime, “Do you know where Captain Rampone is?”

The girl raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow, “What do you need her for?”

“My name is Ali Krieger, she’s expecting me,” Ali was starting to get annoyed by the girl, who was about to open her mouth to say something else but got cut off by a shouting voice.

“Kriegs!” The voice shouted as Ali felt someone jump on her in a hug. She knew that it could only be one person that would act like this and get away with it.

“Pinoe!” She replied, a genuine happy smile appearing on her face as she embraced her friend which she had met in the academy.

Megan released Ali as she took a step back to look at one of her closest friends who she hadn’t seen since Christmas, if she noticed the changes in Ali’s appearance she didn’t give any indication and Ali was grateful for that. Turning toward the desk Pinoe address the girl behind it,” Thank you Kate, I’ll take Ali to Christie,”

The only response that the short blonde haired girl received was an eye roll which made Ali want to roll her own eyes in annoyance, “How did she even become a police officer?” She quietly questioned as they made their way through the station.

“You’re not the only one who’s asked that question Al,” Pinoe laughed, “Her daddy’s got friends in high places, luckily she hardly ever actually goes out on patrol, mostly just desk duty,”

Ali opened her mouth to reply but didn’t say anything as they stopped in front of Christie’s office,” I’m glad your back Ali, you should come find me later we’ll have lunch together, catch up,” Megan grinned and with that she was off down the hallway leaving Ali staring at the office door.

Knocking on the door Ali took another deep breath as she heard a familiar voice telling her to enter and plastering a smile on her face, hoping that it looked genuine.

“Ali,” Christie welcomed with a smile, “It’s good to see you again,”

“It’s good to see you again as well Christie,” Ali answered truthfully knowing that it was okay to call her Christie, when Ali worked here last she wasn’t a Captain.

They talked for a few minutes exchanging pleasantries before they got down to business, “Now I know you know how things work here so I don’t need to go through all of that. I’ve assigned Heather as your partner, I thought that a familiar face would be good for you and I know Pinoe can be a bit much sometimes,” Christie laughed, “She’s in the break room waiting for you and is very excited from what I’ve heard,”

“Your new uniform is in your locker which is number eleven,” Christie finished with a smile, holding a hand out with Ali’s locker keys.

“Thank you,” Ali replied grasping the keys from her captain as she turned to leave.

She didn’t make it to the door before Christie’s voice was calling her back,” Kriegs,” Ali turned around.

“I read about what happened in Germany,” Ali struggled to swallow as she looked at the floor, “Just know, if you ever need anything, if you ever need to talk this door is always open and you are always welcome,” Ali could see the compassion in her Captain’s eyes but she didn’t feel like she deserved it.

“Thank you,” She managed to croak out before making her way out of the office and towards the locker room. There was nobody in there since the shift had actually already started half an hour ago but Ali didn’t need to be there then.

Opening her locker, Ali pulled out her uniform, it was different than the one she had worn in Germany, running her fingers over her name plate Ali smiled, it was sure a step in the right direction. No matter how long the journey, she was determined to get past this no matter what.

* * *

 

“Woah, slow down,” Ashlyn laughed as Nutmeg pulled her along the dirty path of the local park where they usually walked. But Nutmeg just started to bark louder and pull even harder.

“What’s up boy,” Ashlyn asked the husky even though she knew that he couldn’t answer so she wasn’t surprised when all she got were barks in response.

The dog continued to pull Ashlyn who didn’t resist thinking that the dog was either trying to tell her something or had seen an animal it wanted to chase. Either way she wasn’t too fussed she wasn’t in a rush, she had the night shift tonight. It turned out to be the former when they turned the corner to find a man and a women arguing in harsh hushed whispers.

Ashlyn furrowed her eyebrows and frowned. She knew that the two people didn’t know she was there; Nutmeg had stopped his barking but they were to adsorbed in their argument to notice anyway. It was a strange place to argue, a park at half two in the afternoon, she was grateful that there were no children around. She was even more grateful a few seconds later when the man slapped, the obviously younger women, across the face.

“Hey!” Ashlyn shouted as she grasped Nutmeg’s lead tighter in her hand. Rushing over to push the man away from the young trembling girl who looked like she wanted to disappear into the ground with fear, “What the fuck man, don’t hit her,”

“I can do what I want,” The man spat back with a glare, “Now move before I hit you as well, this aint none of your business,”

“Well I’m making it my business,” Ashlyn hissed back trying to make herself look taller in front of the bulky man. That’s when she made the mistake of not moving when she was told, it cost her a right hook to the cheek.

* * *

 

“Hello?” Ashlyn looked up from where she had her arm wrapped around the young girl, whose name she found out is Bethany, to find two police women standing in front of them, “I’m Heather,” The women who first spoke stated gesturing to herself, “And this is Ali,” She pointed to the women standing next to her.

“Hey,” Ashlyn replied her eye’s landing on the second Officer who was stood there shoulders squared. She couldn’t help but notice how stunning the girl was. She looked tired but that did nothing to take away any of her beauty. She also looked familiar.

“Do you mind if I take your statement sweetie while Ali takes your friend’s?” Heather questioned trying to gain the trust of the younger girl.

Ashlyn saw the other Officer motion her head to one side so that they could go talk over there without interrupting Bethany and Heather’s conversation. Ashlyn squeezed the girls shoulder ask she lead Nutmeg over to where the brunette officer was waiting for her.

“So what do you need to know Officer…,” Ashlyn looked at the women’s name tag, “… Krieger,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is still setting up some things! It will start getting into things soon!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been working on this all weekend, hope you enjoy!  
> Tell me what you think!  
> Thank you for all the interest people are taking in this story.

Ali frowned in confusion as the blonde haired women continued to stare at her with her mouth hanging open slightly, the women’s eyes flicking from her newly polished name tag to her face every few seconds as they stood in silence.

“Uhrm, yes Officer Krieger that’s me,” Ali stated hesitantly, thoroughly confused at why the women was just staring at her.

Ashlyn knew exactly who the women standing in front of her once her eyes grazed her name tag. No wonder she had looked so familiar. She opened her mouth to say something but stop short at the feeling of Nutmeg pulling on the lead to sniff around the officer’s leg, jumping up slightly.

“Nutmeg,” Ashlyn scolded pulling hard on the lead to pull him back, she didn’t want to get arrested because her puppy mauled a police officer.

Ali waved her hand in dismissal, “Don’t worry about it,” she smiled as she bent down to stroke the energetic puppy who was jumping at her legs,” Hey, little guy,” She cooed as ruffling behind the husky’s ears as he licked at her hands.

Ashlyn just smiled down at the two, there was no denying that this was Kyle’s younger sister. Not only did they look very similar but they also shared some of the same mannerisms which she was witnessing right now, Ali had acted the almost exact same way as Kyle did when he first met Nutmeg.

“What did you say his name was?” Ali questioned looking up at Ashlyn, squinting her eyes at the sun.

“His name is Nutmeg,” Ashlyn replied simply with a smile.

Ali turned back towards the puppy who was still happily licking at her hands, “Hey Nutmeg,” She gave behind his ears a good ruffle before sighing and standing back up to face Ashlyn and pulling up her note book, as nice as this woman looked she knew she had to get her story to make sure it correlated with the other younger women’s.

“Can you tell me your name please?” She asked.

“Ashlyn, Ashlyn Harris,” Ash replied knowing that this was probably going to be a long process.

Ali’s eyebrows furrowed as her eye’s flicked up from her notepad and towards the blonde, she honestly hadn’t seen the girl before because she would have remembered that, the woman was stunning. But she had definitely heard her name before, it was so familiar but she just couldn’t place where from.

“Okay, Miss Harris, can you tell me exactly what happened?” Ali pushed away her musing knowing that she had a job to do, no matter how familiar a name was.

“Call me Ashlyn please, I don’t like Miss Harris,” Ashlyn insisted. Being called Miss Harris made her feel old and also reminded her of her mother, “And I was just walking Nutmeg before I go to work later and he started pulling on his lead to go somewhere,” She started.

“I figured that he was trying to tell me something or there was an animal he wanted to chase. I wasn’t really in any rush so I just let him pull me where he wanted to go since I don’t like letting him off his lead here, there being a road there and all,” Ashlyn paused so Ali could finish writing down the information she had given, “We rounded that corner,” She gestured behind her to make her point.

“And saw Bethany, that’s the girl with your partner, arguing in whispers, I wasn’t going to do anything but then he slapped her and she looked so scared and defenseless and I wasn’t just going to leave her there with him so I put myself between them,” She finished.

Ali looked up from where she was writing, her eye’s scanning Ashlyn’s face, “And that’s when you got the shiner?”

Ashlyn laughed, “He told me to move and I guess I’ve never been good at taking directions from dickheads,”

Raising her eyebrows with a small smile Ali held in the laugh that was threatening to bubble out of her mouth. She couldn’t understand how Ashlyn could be so nonchalant about being punched in the face, “Are you okay though? Do you need any medical attention, shit, I probably should have asked you that first,” Ali took a step closer to the blonde to inspect her cheek, which was already bruising but thankfully not bleeding.

“Don’t worry about it Officer,” Ashlyn tried to reassure her, “I’m perfectly fine other than a bruise and maybe some teasing from my work friends,”

Ali couldn’t help but let out a chuckle at the blonde’s charming nature, “Where do you work?” She asked before she could help herself. Mentally berating herself for getting off track while she was on duty. Taking a quick glance over to HAO it didn’t look like she was finished yet so she maybe had some time.

“I’m a firefighter, I work at station 18,” Ashlyn answered casually, knowing that if Kyle had ever mentioned her to his sister, now would be the time she’d find out.

Ali could practically feel her eyes almost widening out of her head as she placed the blonde’s name together with where she had heard it before. She worked with Kyle.

“Your Kyle’s Lieutenant?” Ali couldn’t keep the shock out of her voice. She started to remember the women now more than just her name. She’d seen her in a few of Kyle’s Instagram posts, she knows why she hadn’t recognized her straight away now. Ashlyn’s hair was now a lighter shade of blonde rather than the brown it had been but there was no denying they were the same person.

Ashlyn let out a chuckle at the thoroughly shocked look on Ali’s face. She took a minuet to just look at the girl who was undeniably attractive but looked away after feeling a stab of guilt flowing through her feeling guilty since she’d promised Kyle that she wouldn’t do anything with his sister. She didn’t really understand why she felt guilty since all they were doing was talking and it wasn’t really about personal things either it was a interview of sorts.

“Yeah, that’s me,” Confirmed Ashlyn with a big grin. She was proud of her accomplishments in her career and never shielded away from it when mentioned but she also never boasted.

“Oh-I-Uhrm, Kyle mentions you a lot, he really looks up to you since you came to firehouse 18. You must know they had some problems with leadership before then,” Ali replied shyly, twisting her notepad in her hands nervously.

Ashlyn couldn’t help but notice the change in Ali. She had been so sure of herself and confident when they were talking about what had happened at the park but now they were talking about personal things Ashlyn noticed her withdrawing into herself exactly like Kyle said she had been doing.

“I know,” Ashlyn smiled, she knew that the firehouse had in the past had some problems with their previous Lieutenant of truck, “I’m glad I can be someone the guys look up too, I try my best to be that for them,” She added truthfully, not sure why she was actually admitting this to the attractive officer stood in front of her.

Ali opened her mouth to reply but got cut off by HAO calling her over stating that they were going to give Bethany a lift home before they continued with their patrol, promising the young girl that if they saw the man described they would charge him with assault on not only her but also Ashlyn.

Turning round to face Ashlyn who had followed Ali back over to HAO she stated, “If I have any more questions-,”

“You know where to find me,” Ashlyn finished for her with a smile.

“Right,” Ali fiddled with the collar of her uniform before leaning down to once again stroke the small husky, “Bye Nutmeg,”

* * *

 

Ali stared out the window as her and Heather drove around DC after dropping Bethany off at her house and explaining to her mother what had happened. It turns out that the man who got into her face and started arguing with her whilst she was taking a shortcut through the park was a man looking for her father and got annoyed when Bethany wouldn’t tell him where he was.

In reality though Bethany didn’t know where her father was and neither did her mother, it was a good thing that Ashlyn stepped in before it could go any further. Lord knows what could have happened if Ashlyn had decided not to walk Nutmeg before her shift. Ali and HAO promised Bethany and her mother that they would keep an eye out for this man and charge him if they saw him.

Ali couldn’t get Ashlyn out of her mind either as she stared out the window at the passing DC scenery. She had already admired the women for putting herself in harms way for someone who is in trouble, not many people would do that. Then when she’d finally placed who Ashlyn was that admiration instantly turned into respect.

She had always had respect for people who work to protect people no matter what they do to achieve that but Ali had heard from Kyle some of the things the blond haired women had done to help him and other on duty and off. She also knew she was practically married to her job, just like she had been before it happened. Before she had lost sight of herself and didn’t get the help she needed and let it break her instead. Let him break her.

“Ali?” HAO asked cautiously noticing Ali’s spaced out look as she looked out of the window, “Are you okay?” She had, like many others, immediately noticed the change in her friend.

“Yeah, I’m just thinking about some things,”

“What things?” HAO wondered, she knew that something had happened to Ali in Germany and wanted to help her put also she didn’t want to push,” Are you thinking about what happened in Germany?”

Ali froze, “What are you talking about, how do you know what happened in Germany, who told you!” She snapped angrily causing HAO’s eyes to widen in surprise. Ali was normally a laid back and no confrontational person when she wasn’t working.

“Woah. Nobody told me anything, nobody had to Al.  You can see it on your face that something happened, you can tell me you know I’m not going to judge you or hate you if that’s what your bothered about. You can trust me,” Heather reassure reaching across to grasp Ali’s hand that was lying on her lap.

Ali could feel her breathing start to speed up as the images once again filed her mind. Squeezing her eyes shut she pulled her hand from under Heather’s to rub at her face as if she could rub the memories away.

“I can’t,” She croaked out her mouth suddenly feeling like sandpaper “I want to tell you Heather I really do. I just can’t,”

“Okay Al, it’s fine whenever you do want to talk about it though or tell someone, know that you can always come to me,” HAO relented once she noticed Ali’s eye’s welling with tears and pain, “So do you know that blonde girl who you interview before,” She changed the subject.

“Oh, Ashlyn Harris. No I don’t know her personally but she’s Kyle’s Lieutenant on truck,” Ali answered as they pulled up outside the station.

“So there’s a chance you may see her again?” Heather wondered, opening the door to the station.

Ali shifted on her feed, “I suppose I might,” She sounded confused.

“Hmmm, good,” Was the only reply she got.

* * *

 

“What the fuck happened to you?” Jack laughed as Ashlyn threw herself down on the couch in the common room area of the firehouse, joining Kyle and Jack who were already sat there playing a game of cards. The room was quite full with a lot of firefighters and both paramedics there but to Ashlyn’s relief nobody heard Jack’s outburst, not wanting to make a big deal about it.

Kyle looked up from where he was looking at his hand of cars when Ashlyn sat down, “Wow girl, what did happen to you,” His voice seemed more high pitched than usual. Maybe it was the shock of seeing his lieutenant with a black eye.

“Well…” She started wearily, “I met your sister today Kyle,” Was all she offered as explanation causing Jack and Kyle to share a look of confusion.

“And what, she punched you!” Kyle gasped in shock.

Ashlyn didn’t know whether to tease Kyle and say that yes she did in fact punch her or let him of and tell him the truth. She decided on the former, “Yeah she laid one right on me,” She gestured to her bruised eye and cheek, “I got to tell you Kyle, she’s a feisty one,”

Both Kyle and Jack were sat staring at Ashlyn with their mouths gaping in pure shock, Kyle had even dropped his cards, them scattering across the table. Ashlyn held in her laughter as long as she could before it bubbles out of her mouth uncontrollably as she threw her head back in a deep laugh that drew the attention of some of the others in the room to the small group.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself. No she didn’t punch me,” She giggled.

Jack frowned in confusion even more confused than he originally had been when he saw Ashlyn, “So what did happen then?”

“I got in between this asshole and a kid who was about eighteen after he slapped her,” She stated truthfully trying not to make a big deal out of it even though she knew both Kyle and Jack would.

Jack tried to secretly rolled his eyes but Ashlyn caught it. She knew that Jack could get bitter about things especially when the attention wasn’t on him. It was just how he is; Ashlyn had got used to it but sometimes it really got on her nerves when he was selfish sometimes.

However, Kyle just smiled softly at his lieutenant. He would have done the same thing to protect someone who couldn’t protect themselves. Before he had become a firefighter when he was a teenager he did some things that he wasn’t proud about he got into drinking and drugs but being a firefighter really helps him to make up for that and help people who need it.

“Well whoever it was sure got you good,” Jack chuckled as he gestured to her face, “Did you at least get him back?” He questioned causing Kyle to frown.

“Does it matter if she got him back? You alright Ash?” Kyle wondered taking a closer look at one of his closest friend’s face.

Ashlyn just waved him off still not wanting to make a big deal out of something that shouldn’t be,” I’m fine and no I didn’t get him back I just called the police and made sure he didn’t hurt the girl again but he just walked off after I did phone the police,”

“Oh I understand now. Ali was the officer that came?” Kyle had finally figured out where his sister had come into it.

“She’s hot isn’t she, I told you,” Jack took a bite of an apple that Ashlyn had no idea where he got it from.

“Why does that matter!” Ashlyn tried not to snap, “There is more to someone than their looks Jack, maybe you should figure that out sometime,” She didn’t know why but she felt strangely defensive or Ali. Maybe it was because she was Kyle’s sister. Or maybe it was because of the vulnerable and painful look in her eyes when they were talking earlier that day, the way she looked like she hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in months.

“Dude, chill what’s got your panties in a twist?”  Jack laughed, running a hand through his hair.

Ashlyn held back a bitter laugh,” Maybe you should learn when to say things that are appropriate instead of objectifying your friend’s sister,”

Jack scoffed, “It’s not like you don’t think girls are hot, I mean you sleep with enough of them,”

Ash tried to reign in her anger, she knew that she had slept with a few girls in her time here in DC but it wasn’t as much a Jack thought it was, sure she flirted a lot but she didn’t sleep with all of them like Jack was insinuating. But the ones she did she always made sure that she wanted nothing more than one meaningless night. She always made sure that they were sure they wanted to do it.

“Okay guys. That’s enough, we don’t want Ash having another black eye,” Kyle laughed nervously, not wanting Ashlyn and Jack to start arguing knowing that he would take Ash’s side and Jack wouldn’t react well to that even if he was defending his sister. Honestly, sometimes he wonders why he’s even friends with Jack.

“Whatever,” Jack mumbled taking another bite out of his apple before walking off to some of the other guys in the common area.

Ashlyn and Kyle just sat in silence for a while, not commenting on what just happened or could have happened. They didn’t always need to talk they enjoyed each other company without having to talk.

Kyle cleared his throat after a few minutes, “How did she seem to you? I mean maybe it’s just because she’s my sister and I’m close to her that I can tell there is something off with her. Since you don’t know her, is it really that noticeable?”

Ashlyn chewed on the side of her mouth as she thought how to answer, she didn’t want to upset or worry Kyle even more than he already is but she also didn’t want to lie. The truth was always hard no matter how much you don’t want it to be.

“I understand what you meant about her being withdrawn,” She started carefully, “She was fine when she was interviewing me, confidant either and she seemed to like Nutmeg who I was walking at the time,”

“But then when she realised who I was, well I told her I worked here and put two and two together, she seemed to get shy and withdrawn about talking about personal things… I really don’t know what to tell you Kyle,” Ashlyn hated seeing the look on her friend’s face, he looked so defeated and lost as he stared down at the table. Looking at the cards that he had dropped earlier and not picked up since.

“Hey,” Ash moved to the edge of her seat to reach across the table and grasp one of Kyle’s muscular shoulders, “She did seem happy in a way I guess when she was interviewing me, she clearly loves her job from what I could tell and what I heard from you yesterday. Maybe she just needs some time and being here in America will help her,”

“I hope so Ash, I really do,” Kyle spoke softly as he looked up at her causing Ashlyn to give his shoulder s squeeze with a gentle smile.

* * *

 

Ali picked at the label of her beer as she stared into it aimlessly. She’d gone to a bar that she had never been too, knowing her friend’s local spots and trying to avoid them. It’s not that she didn’t want to spend time with them and catch up, they’d asked her if she wanted to go out but she declined claiming that she was tired and still a bit jet lagged which wasn’t a complete lie but not the whole truth.

“Ali?” She heard a voice question from her right. Turning her head, she saw the women she had interviewed day in the park two days ago, she’d noticed the blonde sit down around five minutes ago in her peripheral vision but she hadn’t realized it was her until now.

“Ashlyn,” She replied slowly, raising an eyebrow when Ashlyn moved from the bar stool she was sat on to the one directly next to Ali.

Ashlyn situated herself in the bar stool, taking a sip out of her own beer before tilting her head at Ali, hazel eye’s raking over her face making Ali feel self-conscious, “Hey, are you here on your own?”

“Yes,” Ali replied shortly turning away from the blonde to once again look back at her beer, not really in the mood for having a conversation.

The reason she had come to this bar was so she didn’t see anyone she knew; she really wasn’t expecting Ashlyn to be here even if she didn’t exactly know her per say.

Ash frowned at the short answer, figuring out that Ali didn’t really want to talk so she just continued sitting there drinking her beer in silence. It was about twenty minutes later after Ali had finished signalling the bartender for another beer that she finally turned to look at Ashlyn curiously.

“Why are you still here when I was rude to you?”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I know that this isn't as long as the other chapters but I needed to get this out of the way in order for the story to continue progressing.  
> If everything goes to plan I should have another two chapters out by Friday night, one tomorrow and then one on Friday.  
> Tell me what you think! I love hearing all your responses!

“Why are you still here when I was rude to you?”

Ashlyn paused beer almost at her lips as she turned her eyes towards Ali who was staring at her curiously clutching her own beer tight enough in her hand that her knuckles were turning white. Even though she sounded confident and demanding Ashlyn could tell she was nervous.

Deciding to think about what she was going to say before replying to Ali, not wanting the women to think she was some kind of weirdo, Ashlyn swiveled her body round in her bar stool so she was fully facing Ali.

“Sometime,” Ashlyn started, “Sometimes all somebody needs is for someone to be there and you don’t need to talk for that to happen. Sometimes you just need someone to be there even if all you do is sit in silence,”

Ashlyn paused to see if Ali wanted to say anything but the brunette just continued to stare at her but this time with a frown instead of a curious look, “You looked like you didn’t want to talk to anyone. But you also look like you need someone,” She finished gently.

“Well I don’t need anyone,” Ali snapped, still confused at why Ashlyn was even still sitting next to her even after the blonde’s explanation, “You don’t even know me, so how could you be here for me?”

“Maybe that’s exactly what you need,” Ashlyn tried, “Someone who you don’t know to be there, someone who isn’t going to judge you if all you want to do is drink,”

Ali couldn’t understand why Ashlyn was doing this. They had only met once before and even though they share a common interest of Kyle that doesn’t mean that they should interact any more than they already did and that was just for work.

Turning so that she was once again facing the bar and not Ashlyn Ali muttered, “Why are you doing this?”

Ashlyn now also turned so her body was facing the bar as well, in an attempted to make Ali feel more comfortable but her eye’s never left Ali’s face, “Kyle’s a good friend to me, a really good friend to me, and he is really concerned about you,”

“He doesn’t need to be,” Ali argued into her beer as she took a swig even though she knew that Kyle had good enough reasons to worry about her. She knew that if it was Kyle in her position she would be beside herself with worry. She didn’t want him to worry though, she could handle this herself.

“Look Ali, I may be overstepping my boundaries because I really don’t know you at all and It’s weird for strangers to have a conversation that is emotionally charging but Kyle is one of my best friends and I know what it’s like to feel lost,” Ashlyn reached over to place her hand on top of Ali’s in hope of reassurance but it did the exact opposite when Ali pulled her hand away like she had been burned.

Ashlyn couldn’t help but feel hurt and a sense of rejection. She didn’t even know this woman but she was drawn to her. She didn’t know if it was because she was a compassionate person and she hates seeing Kyle so hurt so she wanted to help in any way she could or if it was something else entirely. She didn’t want to think about whatever else it could be.

“I’m sorry,” Ali sighed running a hand through her hair, “I’m trying okay, I’m trying to be my old self again. I’m trying for him.” She whispered, turning her head to face Ashlyn who was still looking at her.

Ash smiled softly, “I know you are,” She soothed seeing the truth shining in the brunette’s eyes.

“I-uh, I’m going to go now,” Ali stated standing up to but her jacket on whilst nodding at the bartender, she turned around to head towards the door but stopped and turned back around again, “Thank you,”

Frowning Ashlyn asked, “For what? I didn’t do anything,”

“N-no you did,” Ali took a deep breath, “You made me realize that maybe I do want somebody to be here for me, maybe a need somebody,”

Ashlyn could see that Ali had a hard time admitting this and whether she would actually go to somebody to talk about why she had become so withdrawn was another issue all together but for now Ashlyn just nodded giving Ali a smile as the brunette turned again to head towards the bar entrance.

“Oh and Ali!” Ashlyn called once Ali had gotten a few steps away causing her to look over her shoulder, “If you even want some company without having to talk, I come here a lot,” She smiled.

 

* * *

 

A week and a half later Ashlyn found herself walking into the bar to find Ali sat in the stool she had the past three times they had ran into each other. Having just sat in each other’s company two times after the first time, Ali gradually talking more.

“Hey,” Ashlyn greeted as she slid into the stool next to Ali, waving a hand to try and get the bartenders attention.

Ali nodded in her greeting offering a mumbled hello as she continued to take sips out of here beer, most of her attention fixated on the TV screen behind the bar which was playing a football game. Ashlyn didn’t take offence to Ali’s minimal response, if she was being honest with herself she didn’t expect anything else from the police officer. She wasn’t much of a talker but what she’d heard from Kyle his sister used to talk quite a bit.

“Whose playing?” Ashlyn questioned casually once she’d received her beer. She was only going to have the one since she had an early shift in the morning. It was only eight o’clock and she figured that Ali had come straight from her shift for the MPD.

Ali hummed into the top of her beer before tuning to look at Ashlyn, “It’s the Washington Spirit Vs Orlando Pride game,”

“Ah,” Ashlyn smiled, “Women’s football,”

This intrigued Ali, she could hear the pride and also wistfulness in the blonde’s voice and she was curiously as to why, “Do you like women’s football?”

“I love it, I used to play in college and wanted to make a career out of It but I tore my ACL which was fine I knew I could come back from that and I did but then I had the dreadful experience of tearing it again straight after and I couldn’t come back strong enough to make a career out of it,” She smiled sadly, “I play when I can with the kids at the community centre and I love it and I like to think the kids do as well,” Ashlyn was now used to just talking and letting Ali chime in when she wanted too.

Ali nodded her focus now shifting from the game and two Ashlyn, she was starting to realize that they had more in common and if Ali had moved back to the Us before Christmas instead of after maybe they would have had a chance at being good friends but not now. She didn’t want to let anyone else in. Not anymore.

“I used to play soccer at Penn State,” Ali started unsure but carried on when she received a reassuring smile from Ashlyn who wasn’t looking at the TV screen anymore, “But I broke my leg and had some complications with it and then never came back afterwards,”

“Ew, you went to Penn State,” Ashlyn joked trying to ease the tension she could see tight in Ali’s shoulders, “I was a Tar Heel myself,”

She wasn’t successful at getting a laugh out of Ali put she could see a small smile blossoming on the women’s face as she turned back to the game on the TV screen. This made Ashlyn smile to herself, maybe Ali was finally warming up to her.

The two women sat in silence for the next twenty minutes which wasn’t something uncommon between them, Ali had only started talking a little bit the last time they had ran into each other at the bar.

Ashlyn hadn’t told Kyle about her meetings with his sister, she didn’t really think it was any of his business but in a way she also thought that it was something between her and Ali. She was also getting concerned about how much Ali does go to the bar, she’d asked the bartender, Sam, who she knew in passing about how much Ali comes. He told her that she comes almost every day but to not worry because she doesn’t always drink and if she does she never has more than two beers.

“So, who are you rooting for?” Ashlyn asked after a while of them watching the football game in silence.

Ali couldn’t help but let of a small scoff, “DC of course, are you not?”

“Noop,” Ashlyn grinned at Ali’s judging look, “I’m from Florida so I’m rooting for Orlando tonight, but if they were playing anyone else I would be rooting for DC. They’ve come a long way since they first started.”

“I remember Kyle saying you were from Florida now!” Ali let out before realizing she had spoken quite loudly and blushed, “Sorry,”

“There’s no need to be sorry,”

Ali didn’t talk for the rest of the night but she did admit to herself that she liked the blonde’s company and could actually seem them being friends in the future if she could just let her in.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said I was going to update but some things came up so I wasn't able to finish the chapter and then I went on holiday so I couldn't upload anything then. I got back yesterday and managed to finish this chapter today so here it is!  
> Tell me what you think! Love hearing feedback from you guys.

Ali didn’t want to admit it but for the last three weeks she had been going to the bar almost every night in hope of seeing Ashlyn there. She knew when she was going to be there since she had the same shifts as Kyle and she had managed to memorize his schedule but not just so she knew when to be at the bar but also because she had been trying to put more effort into seeing him.

She could tell that it made Kyle happy that she was spending time with her, Ashlyn had commented a few nights ago that maybe he had met someone since he had been happier than usual but Ali knew that wasn’t the case.

Seeing Ashlyn made Ali feel free in a way, they still didn’t talk past the occasional conversation and they never really had any deep conversations but Ali really appreciated Ashlyn’s presence. She’d been home from Germany for just over a month now yet nothing had seemed to change for her. She still woke up every night in cold sweats and then having to run until she was exhausted in an attempt to forget the memories but It never worked. She still cried in the shower.

One of the only times she actually forgot was when she was sharing that not meaningful conversation with Ashlyn, the memories didn’t seem to haunt her then but she couldn’t understand why. She was also actually having a good time whilst she was on shift, glad to be back. The policing in America was a lot different to what it was in Germany.

“So Al, are you going to come out with us tonight?” HAO wondered as she got back into their patrol car with the two coffees she’d just been in Starbucks for, handing one to Ali as she situated herself back into the driver’s seat.

“I don’t know,” Ali sighed, she knew that it was one of the nights that Ashlyn was more than likely going to be at the bar she was now a regular at just as she had been every Friday for the past three weeks.

“Come on Ali, you’ve been back for over a month yet you haven’t been out with us yet, it will be fun,” Heather tried to convince Ali but all it did was make her feel guilty. She knew that she was neglecting her friends and as much as she loved them they wouldn’t understand when she just didn’t feel like talking, not like Ashlyn did.

Shaking her head slightly to try and rid herself of thoughts of the blonde firefighter who had been occupying her mind too much recently in her opinion Ali finally gave in, “Fine, I’ll come for a little while, whose coming?”

Heather smiled brightly, excited that Ali had finally decided to come out with them which she had been asking her to do for weeks now, “Not many people, just me, you, Pinoe, Becky and maybe a few others,”

“Okay,” Ali agreed, “but I really don’t want to stay out too late,”

“That fine, neither do I Dave’s coming home tonight from his trip,” HAO reassured.

“I still can’t believe you’re getting married,” Ali gushed, genuinely excited for her friend.

HAO sipped at her coffee giddily, “Me either! Not long now either, it’s only three months away I’m so excited, you’re still coming right?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for anything Heather!” Ali smiled actually feeling excited as she did when she’d first received HAO’s wedding invitation in the mail before Christmas. She was glad that her and Dave were finally getting married and couldn’t be any happier for her friend even if she tried.

* * *

 

Ashlyn looked up from her beer to glance at the clock for what like the fifth time that minuet, sighing she drunk the rest of her beer and grasped her jacket getting ready to head out. There was no way Ali was going to come now since it was half eleven and they normally met up around half nine on a Friday.

“You don’t want another one Ash?” Sam, the bartender, asked sympathetically.

Shaking her head Ashlyn tapped the bar, “I don’t think she’s coming tonight Sam,” She stated sadly even though she knew she shouldn’t be feeling this sad since her and Ali had only known each other for just over a month but they had some type of connection that Ashlyn couldn’t figure out.

Sam had seen the progress of Ashlyn and Ali’s friendship right before his eye’s. He’d know Ashlyn ever since she’d moved from Florida to DC and they had some good conversations sometimes. He could tell that Ali was withdrawn, he only found out her name was actually Ali last week, but he could also see how Ashlyn brought her out of her shell even if just a little bit.

“Maybe she was just busy or picked up an extra shift at work, cops do that a lot,” He had also figured out that she was a police officer, she hadn’t told him but he figured when she came in wearing a MPD jumper a few weeks ago.

“Yeah, maybe,” Ashlyn would be lying if she said she didn’t feel disgruntled. She had thought that Ali was warming up to her since the brunette had started to strike up conversation these past couple of meetings without Ashlyn having too.

“I’ll see you soon Sam,” Ashlyn didn’t wait for a reply from the bartender before she was already out the door and walking to her apartment.

 

* * *

 

“Stop the car,” Ali demanded Monday morning when she saw someone out of her car causing HAO to pull up at the side of the road but she didn’t turn the sirens on just yet.

“What is it Al?” She wondered, looking at her friend who was staring intently out the window of their patrol car.

“That’s him!” She almost shouted.

Heather frowned in confusion, “That’s who?”

Ali gestured out of the window widely at a middle age bald man walking down the street, “That’s him right? The guy that Ashlyn and the young girl, Bethany, described. That’s who assaulted them!”

She knew she was right since the man was wearing a short sleeved shirt and the tattoo that both Ashlyn and Bethany had described was unmistakable but she couldn’t help but second guess herself.

Heather looked out of the window to where Ali was gesturing and saw that she was right, that was the guy they had been trying to find for weeks now. Not only could he be charged with the assault of both the firefighter Ashlyn and the young girl Bethany, who’s Dad owed the man money, he could also be taken in for a few other crimes he had been pulled up for.

“Shit Ali. Good spot,” HAO praised as she pulled the patrol car around so they were cruising on the other side of the road, almost at where the man was walking on the sidewalk before she slowed down enough so she could roll down the window right next to the man, “Mick O’Connell?” She questioned casually.

The bald man turned to look at the patrol car, his eye’s widening when he saw them, having no idea that they were even there. He looked at the in shock for a few seconds before he took off running down the street causing Heather and Ali to both groan in unison.

“I hate it when they run,” Ali groaned to herself as she quickly unbuckled her seatbelt to exit the car and run down the street after the man, HAO opting to swing the car round to follow after them.

“Here’s a little tip,” Ali huffed five minutes later as she shoved the bald man into the back of the squad car, “Next time don’t run,” She added darkly, as she stretched out her back from having to tackle him to the ground after he wouldn’t stop, almost running over a few people as she chased after him.

She groaned once more as she slid into the passenger seat, “Also next time, I drive, you run after the assholes who try to resist arrest,” Ali motioned to HAO with a good natured frown.

Heather just smiled, “Oh I’m so glad your back, my last partner never let me drive,”

* * *

 

Ali wrung her hands together nervously as she walked into firehouse 18, still in her uniform with a file in her arms. It had been awhile since she had been to the station and she knew that there were new people, one of them being Ashlyn, and some of the firefighters who were there last time she came like Tobin, Kelley, Hope and Jack.

She frowned as she thought of Jack whose real name should have been Jackass. Every time she saw him he felt the need to hit on her even though she had shot him down countless of times, she honestly didn’t know why Kyle was friends with him and how they were close.

At first she could understand it, Jack originally comes off as charming but he really wasn’t. He was a conceded asshole who was nothing like Kyle. He was a womanizer which Kyle was obviously not but he saw every women as an object and not as a person and that was one of the reasons why she couldn’t understand why her brother was friends with him because he was a very compassionate person.

“Ali?” A voice questioned from behind her as she walked past the fire trucks.

Turning around she saw Tobin and another girl stood at the front of one of the trucks talking, she had been that lost in her thoughts that she hadn’t even noticed them, “Tobin,” She smiled happily.

The girl hadn’t really changed since Ali last saw her still the same old Tobin in looks and Ali hoped she also hadn’t changed personality wise. She really liked Tobin and hoped they could catch up sometime even though she knew she probably wouldn’t act on that.

“How have you been Ali, wait, we can talk about this later. This is Alex she’s a paramedic who has worked her for about a year now,” Tobin gestured to the stunning looking girl next to each other, well not as stunning as Ashlyn. Ali shook her head to try and get the ridiculous thought out of her head.

“And Alex, this is Ali, Kyle’s sister, she just came back from working as a cop in Germany,” Tobin finished with a dazzling smile.

Alex also had a wide smile on her face as she offered her hand to Ali, “Wow, your Ali. I’ve heard quite a lot about you from the girls here and of course Kyle,”

This made Ali worry about what Ashlyn may have heard about her from the firefighters here. She used to come around quite a lot when she was in the academy and just to hang out with the people since they were all nice people. They all eventually ended up being friends.

“All good I hope; any bad things I need to have a chat with people about?” Ali smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes which Alex didn’t notice but Tobin did.

“I can go get Kyle for you if you like?” Tobin questioned, smile still in place.

“Oh no. I’m here to see Ashlyn, uh Ashlyn Harris,” Ali coughed, “Police business, you know,”

Alex chuckled, “Oh yeah we all saw her shiner a couple of weeks ago, are you here about that?”

Ali just nodded not wanted to give too much away since it wasn’t really any of their business but Ashlyn but she could also see they didn’t mean any harm. Her nerves that she had been distracted from were starting to come back as Tobin led her into the common room where Ashlyn was sat drinking a coffee.

Ali was about to open her mouth to say something to the blonde who had looked up at the room when the trio had walked in, Tobin having called her name, but got cut off by an obnoxious whistle.

“Ali Krieger,” A voice boomed from behind her causing Ali to resist an eye roll instantly knowing who the voice belongs to. Turning round she came face to face with a beaming Jack.  She desperately scanned the room to see if Kyle was there to save her from having this conversation but he was nowhere to be found.

“Jack, it’s good to see you,” Ali lied, holding back a sigh.

“It’s good to see you as well!” Jack gave a big smile before pulling Ali into a hug.

Ashlyn watch from where she was sat, pulling her cup up to her lips in an attempt to hide her frown at Jack giving Ali a hug. It was a mixture of an annoyed frown because Ali clearly didn’t like Jack but he seemed oblivious to her dislike. But also a concerned frown at the way Ali seemed to freeze up at his touch.  

Ali held back a flinch as Jack wrapped his arms around her tightly, pulling her into his, admittedly, muscular body. She didn’t want to talk to Jack especially today, only having gotten a couple of hours sleep last night she really wasn’t in the mood for his obnoxious personality and well just him in general.

“I can’t believe you’re here! I’ve been trying to get Kyle to tell you to come by since you got back, do you want me to go and get him?” Jack flashed his teeth in a grin, his eyes going over Ali once more.

Clearing her throat, Ali made sure she took a discreet step back so Jack wasn’t stood so close to her,” Actually I need to see Ashlyn,” She gestured to the blonde who was watching their interaction curiosity, fire shining in her eyes which confused Ali.

Jack’s eyebrows scrunched together as he also took a step back, confusion filtering across his face, “You’re here to see Harris? What you need her for, I can help you if you need something from the firehouse,” He offered.

Ashlyn held back a scoff at Jack calling her Harris which he didn’t usually do. She was seeing a whole different side to her friend and even though she already knew he was a bit of an ass he was sure being one now.

She could tell that he had a bit of a crush on Ali, well a bit was probably an understatement, she had already figured that out when he couldn’t stop talking about how hot Ali was in front of Kyle but it was even more clear now. Ashlyn could also tell that Ali had no interest in him whatsoever, in fact she looked jittery around him.

“No,” Ali protested, “It’s some police business I need to talk to her about, hence the badge,” She tapped the badge stuck to her uniform, her annoyance getting the best of her.

Ashlyn stood up and move towards Ali, not wanting to hear Jack’s reply, “Do you want to go talk somewhere more private,” She motioned her head towards the back rooms where the bunks were in case you were on a late shift and wanted to rest.

After seeing Ali nodded she gestured for the brunette to follow her as she made her way to her little cubical type thing which had a bunk as well as a desk, since she was a Lieutenant she was required to fill out lots of paperwork, opening the door she let Ali go in first who decided to linger near her desk.

“You can sit down,” Ashlyn motioned to her desk chair as she herself sat down on the bottom bunk.

Ali looked around the room curiously as she did what Ashlyn suggested, sitting down in the desk chair her eyes found some pictures that were on Ashlyn’s desk of people who she assumed were Ashlyn’s family.

There was a picture of Ashlyn and an elderly woman who Ali didn’t think was her mom but knew she was probably a family member; they were both smiling so brightly. The next one was a young Ashlyn with another young boy who Ali figured out was her brother who Ashlyn had mentioned before, Ali tried to hold back a smile. The last picture was Ashlyn in full uniform standing with a bunch of people, the elderly women included, who were all standing around Ashlyn proudly.

“So,” Ash cleared her throat, “Not that I’m complaining, it’s good to see you since we’re…kind of friends now, I mean I think we are,” She rambled on getting flustered. She felt like hitting herself in the face, she wasn’t one to get nervous and flustered.

“What is it that you need?” She finally manged to get out.

Ali cleared her throat as she turned away from where she was looking at Ashlyn’s pictures, taking a photo out from her file she handed it to Ashlyn who took it from her hand, their fingers brushing together slightly, “Is this him, the guy who assaulted you, we have already gotten confirmation from Bethany but we also need it from you as well,”

“Yeah that’s him” Ashlyn looked over the photo nodding, “Who is he? What’s going to happen to him?”

“His name is Mick O’Connell, he’s known to the police, we’ve been trying to get him in for many things for some time now and maybe with your and Bethany’s accounts of what happened he can go down for assault for a while and give the detectives some time to build a bigger case against him,” Ali informed the firefighter who had moved to the edge of her bunk, listening intently.

Handing the photo back to Ali, Ashlyn asked curiously, “What other things has he done,”

“I can’t tell you that, but he is a dangerous man, you’re lucky you got away with just a black eye. You did something really brave to help a young girl,” Ali said softly.

Ali honestly thought that Ashlyn was really brave, after finding out who the man actually was and how dangerous he can be she had been glad that Ashlyn wasn’t hurt any more than she actually was.

Ashlyn nodded, she understood that there were somethings that Ali couldn’t tell her, “So he may get some time?”

“Well it depends on whether or not you are willing to testify, Bethany isn’t sure she wants to but even with just your statement her will probably get some time,”

“Of course I’m willing to testify, I mean if it gets a bad guy of the streets even if just for some time, I’m willing to do it,” Ashlyn told the police office.

Ali smiled slightly, “Ok well either me, Heather or someone from the station will be in touch with you soon about it,” She stood up from the desk chair, “Heather’s outside so I need to go,”

Ashlyn stood up as well standing in front of her door before Ali could open it and leave causing the brunettes eyebrows to crease in confusion at the firefighter stood in front of her.

“Are you okay?” Ashlyn asked quietly, “I mean you wasn’t at the bar the other night and I was worried that maybe something had happened to you,” She rubbed the back of her neck nervously.

Ali was taken aback by the blonde’s obvious concern for her, when she had gone out with HAO and the girls the other night she hadn’t really thought about how Ashlyn would react to her no being at the bar, she didn’t even know if Ash would have been there anyway.

“Oh. Uhrm, yes I’m fine, Heather and some others from work insisted I go out with them because I hadn’t since I came back from Germany,” Ali admitted sheepish, holding her folder tight to her chest.

Ashlyn could feel relief flowing through her at the fact that Ali was okay and maybe she did still want to hang out with her, “Oh cool, yeah I was just wondering since you are normally there and then you weren’t and I like hanging out with you, even if I do most of the talking,” Ashlyn tried to play it off with a smile.

“You didn’t wait for me did you,” Ali felt guilty but she was also curios.

Coughing nervously Ash replied as nonchalant as she could, “Nah I just had a beer and came home, I wasn’t going to stay long anyway, “She lied.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to WINTERFIRE11 for inspiring me to call Jack a jackass ;)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter woo!  
> Tell me what you think!  
> Slightly shorter than usual but there is a reason I cut it off where I did.

Ashlyn grunted as she kicked the front door of the house open, she was exhausted. She always was when she worked a double shift but this was the third call they have had today and her shift was still a few hours from finishing. Holding an arm up she motioned for her crew to go separate ways in the house as her and Kyle made their way up the stairs Tobin following closely behind them.

“Fire department, call out,” She shouted as she entered the closest bedroom towards her, Tobin and Kyle carrying on toward the next room.

Instantly looking around the room when she entered she could tell that this was one of the least effected rooms in the house which she was glad for because it seemed like a young child’s room.

“Fire department, call out,” She shouted again as she looked around the room for the child. The bed was messy and unmade which meant that there had be a child sleeping in there that night, she just hoped that the little one was still in the room and hadn’t wandered out of the bedroom where the fire was worse.

She had pulled children out of bad fire like this before and when she was training to be a firefighter they had always told her that when children got scared they decided to hide. Laying herself down on the floor, ignoring the heat from the fire raging below, she looked under the bed for any sign of life. There wasn’t.

Standing back up she crossed over to the other side of the room and opened a closet door, closing it behind her instantly when flames burst out of it. It made her heart pound for whoever was in the next bedroom since it was seemingly engulfed in flames.

She could here Tobin and Kyle shouting for a hose which showed how bad the next room must have been and she silently thanked the heavens that this room hadn’t been effected as much as it could have been had they gotten here any later since they were now getting the fire under control.

Scanning her eyes around the room once again she stopped on a wardrobe that was propped slightly open, a blanket obscuring it from closing. Surging forward she opened the wardrobe, sighing in relief when she saw the small boy curled up in side clutching a teddy bear to his chest.

He seemed barely conscious as she lifted him out of the wardrobe checking him over for any major injuries and the his pule which was weak and barely there. She was just about to rush him out of the house when she felt a small hand curl around her wrist, looking down she saw droopy blue eyes staring at her, large tears rolling down his youthful face. He couldn’t be any older that five.

“Hey hey,” She soothed placing a gloved hand on his cheek, wiping away his tears but more just fell, “I’m going to get you out of here okay, I’m going to get you out.” She reassured as she stood up, pulling the young boy into her chest before making her way out of the bedroom, making sure to keep the boy shielded from the surrounding flames as best she could as she rushed him out of the house.

“Alex! Kelley!” Ash called as she burst out of the house still tightly holding the small boy against her chest. Both paramedics looked over at the shout before rushing towards Ashlyn and the young boy.

“Has he said anything?” Alex rasped as she took the small child from Ashlyn, lying him on the floor as she gestured for Kelley to go the gurney.

“No,” Ashlyn weakly replied, watching Alex lean down to place her ear above the now unconscious boy, checking to see if he was breathing.

Alex leaned back up quickly, “We’re going to need to intubate him,” She looked over to find Kelley who was still getting the gurney out of the back of the ambulance,” Okay Ash, I need you to hold his head still for me,” she requested.

Ash just nodded, moving so she was kneeling down next to the blonde boy’s head, wiping his matted brown hair to one side soothingly even though she knew he was unconscious and had no idea what she was doing before quickly taking her gloves off and placing her hands on either side of his face to stop it from lolling to the side as Alex routed through her paramedic’s bag to find the equipment she would need.

She just hoped he would be okay.

* * *

 

Ali walked into the bar to find Ashlyn staring at her beer, something that was normally reserved for her. Sliding into her now usual barstool next to Ashlyn, Ali didn’t say anything. She knew that when Ashlyn wanted to and if she wanted to she would say something; it was quite the role reversal from what they were used to.

“Works tough sometime,” Ashlyn sighed as she downed the rest of her beer, putting her hand up straight after to get Sam’s attention, “But I guess I don’t need to tell you that,” She said around ten minutes after Ali had sat down next to her.

“You don’t,” Ali coughed slightly uncomfortable, “do you want to talk about it?” She added gently.

Ashlyn didn’t reply straight away, she just swirled her finger around the top of the new beer Sam had placed in front of her, “There was this house fire today,” She finally spoke.

“They house was practically engulfed when we got there but we managed to get through, there were three people in the house but we didn’t know that. I manged to find one, a little boy and got him out but his parent were found dead in their bed by Kyle and Tobin, completely burnt even though that probably wasn’t what killed them, the smoke inhalation would have been,”

“What happened to the little boy?” Ali wondered carefully.

“I don’t know,” Ash replied truthfully, “I’m going to go to the hospital tomorrow and see if I can find out,”

They didn’t speak again for a while; they didn’t need too. Ali was slowly starting to see Ashlyn as a friend, something in the past she never found hard to do until it happened. She knew she had trust issues now but she also knew that she really didn’t have a choice but to trust Ashlyn since it’s something she seemed to d naturally.

She found herself not minding that she trusted Ashlyn, their almost friendship as she thought of it but she knew deep down that they were already friends, she just didn’t want to admit it. But if she did she knew she appreciated that they could just sit there and not have to talk, Ashlyn didn’t pressure her to talk and she was thankful for that.

Hesitating slightly Ali reached out to press her hand against Ashlyn’s sleeve covered forearm, her hand warming up, “I-I can go with you if you want. To the hospital, I’m not on shift tomorrow,” She offered uncertainty.

Ashlyn paused before she turned to face Ali, she didn’t know why but she could tell by the slight tremor in Ali’s voice that her offering this was a big deal to her. It made her internally smile at the fact that maybe Ali was finally maybe opening up to her.

“I’d like that, thank you,” Ashlyn finally turned to face Ali with a soft smile, “I’d like that a lot,” She placed her own hand on top of Ali’s which was still resting on her arm, feeling the other girl’s hand twitch slightly but neither pulled away.

“We do two very different jobs Ashlyn but there also similar at the same time. I know what it’s like to not be able to help someone. But I also know what it’s like to help someone and so do you,” Ali spoke from experience.

Being a police officer meant that you couldn’t save everyone but the ones you could save made the difference, she knew that’s what it would be like for a firefighter and hoped that the little boy that Ashlyn saved would be okay.

* * *

 

Ashlyn looked at her watch once more as her leg bounced nervously. She was sat on a bench outside the hospital the next morning waiting for Ali. The brunette wasn’t late, them agreeing to meet outside the hospital at nine, Ashlyn was just early not being able to sit around her apartment doing nothing any longer.

The firefighter had been awake since five, unable to sleep. She’d done everything she could think off, she’d been for a run Nutmeg running along beside her, she’d gone to lift weights at the gym and she’d even gone grocery shopping.

“I’m not late am I,” Ashlyn heard a flustered voice breath. Looking up she saw Ali dressed in tight black jeans and a MPD hoodie standing in front of the bench.

“No no,” Ashlyn stood up, wiping her sweaty hands on her own black jeans, “I’m early. I got restless.”

Ali just nodded in understanding, “Are you ready to go in?” She asked, her eye’s searching Ashlyn’s face intently. She could she the blonde tense up as she sank back down onto the bench.

Ali looked around feeling unsure of herself before she knelt down in front of Ashlyn, “Hey,” she tried to get her attention softly causing Ashlyn to look up.

“You don’t have to do this Ashlyn, but do you want to go on not knowing or you can want to know. It’s not about doing something because you have too, it’s doing it because you want to,”

Ashlyn stared into Ali’s startling brown eyes with a small smile, feeling like Ali was actually starting to see her as a friend, “Who knew you could be so wise,” She teased admittedly cautiously.

“I’m ready,” She added as Ali stood back up, Ashlyn following her as they made their way into the hospital.

Once they made their way inside right before they got to the reception Ashlyn froze turning round to face Ali, “I don’t even know his name,” She said desperately.

“That’s okay, we can always just ask, I’m sure they will know who you’re talking about,” Ali tried to soothe.

Ash nodded in acceptance and made her way towards the receptionist desk, clearing her throat to get the receptionist attention who looked like a middle aged man.

“How can I help you?” He looked up through glasses from where he was typing.

“I’m looking for a little boy, I don’t know his name, he came in yesterday from a fire, I’m the firefighter who pulled him out, I was hoping you could tell me how he is,” Ashlyn questioned.

The man hesitated, “So you’re not family?” he sighed when he received a head shake in response, “I’m sorry I can’t tell you,”

Ashlyn sighed and was about to protest when she heard a voice call her name,” Christen,” She smiled once she turned around and saw the young ER doctor who treated her for some injuries she had received over her time at firehouse18, she was also good friends with Tobin.

“Are you okay?” The younger girl asked, shifting some charts in her arms.

“I don’t think your aloud to help me Christen but I’m just wondering about a little boy who was brought in here yesterday from a fire, I just want to know what happened to him. Do you know who I’m talking about,”

Christen nodded, “Follow me,”

Ali coughed knowing that Ashlyn had probably forgotten she was there, her focus being on finding the little boy, “I’ll just uh wait here for you,”

“No, I want you to come with me,” Ashlyn requested softly as she turned to face Ali before then looking back to Christen, “This is my friend Ali, she’s a police officer,”

Christen smiled in greeting,” I’s nice to meet you Ali,” She gave her hand out which Ali took, “I can take you to see him,”

“He’s alive,” Ashlyn breathed in relief.

Smiling bright Christen confirmed as they walked down the hospital hallways and into an elevator, “I’m taking you to see him,”

Ali shifted once they got into the elevator, trying to press herself into the wall without the other two noticing but unfortunately for her Ashlyn did but she didn’t say anything.

“Can you tell me what’s wrong with him? About him?” Ashlyn asked Christen.

“I’m not really supposed to tell you but since he’s a ward of the state now I can make an exception. His name is Elijah Carwood, he’s almost three years old and he’s going to be just fine,” Christen smiled once more as the exited the elevator.

“This is his room if you want to go in and see him,” Christen stopped in front of a door in the children’s ward.

Ashlyn nodded asking Ali to come in with her as she took a deep breath before opening the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter was a bit more Ash but I think you need to have a insight into both of their lives.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a short chapter but I wanted to update because It may be a few days until I an update again.  
> Unfortunately, I have broken my finger. This means I am finding it hard to type and is going to take me longer to write chapters...
> 
> Anyways, tell me what you think!

Ashlyn took a deep breath as the door to the hospital room swung open, she resisted the urge to reach back and take Ali’s hand in hers for some reassurance.

 It was something she would do to anyone else if they had come with her but not Ali, she knew that just Ali being there was all the reassurance she should need but the nervousness was seeping back after disappearing when she had found out that the little boy, Elijah, as she now knows, is going to be okay.

Ali could tell that Ashlyn was nervous to see the little boy by the way the women in front of her shoulders were tensed up. Reaching forward before she could think about what she was actually doing Ali placed her hand on Ashlyn’s shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze before quickly withdrawing.

Throwing back an appreciated smile Ashlyn took another deep breath and took a step into the room, her eye’s instantly landing upon the small boy sat up in the large hospital coloring something in a book.

She took quick glance around the room, Elijah seemed to be fine other than being hooked up to a heart rate machine but Ashlyn knew that was a precaution they took with anyone who had inhaled a lot of smoke and the different types of gases that came with a fire. He was also hooked up to a drip.

Ashlyn stood at the end of his bed for a few moments, Elijah not noticing her, not really knowing what to do. She was just about to leave the room since the little boy hadn’t seen her he wouldn’t have even known she was there but Ali nudged her snapping her out of the thoughts of leaving.

“Hey,” She said shakily causing the little boy to look up, his blue eye’s meeting hers just like they had in the fire, kneeling down beside the bed she reached out slowly to place her hand on the boy’s leg, willing to stop if she saw any resistance, there wasn’t, “Do you remember me?”

Elijah didn’t say anything at first he just continued to look at her with wide eye’s. Ashlyn wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t remember her she did have her mask and all her other gear on, she looks quite different without it. She knew though when Elijah reached forward and placed his small hand on her forearm just like he had done when Ashlyn had lifted him out of the wardrobe that he remembered her.

“My name’s Ashlyn and I just wanted to see if you were okay, you were a very brave boy,” Ashlyn spoke softly, she was unsure if the little boy sat staring at her even knew what she was saying but she tried anyway.

“Hi,” Elijah said shyly.

Ashlyn smiled at the sound of the little boys high pitched voice, “This is my friend Ali, she a police officer,” Ashlyn waved Ali over to kneel down next to her so they were both in Elijah eye line.

Elijah smiled for the first time and made a small sound that resembled a siren which caused both Ashlyn and Ali to look at each other and smile. It was only when Ashlyn looked back that she saw him gesturing to something in the book he was coloring.

Ali moved back and sat on the chair beside the bed as Ashlyn carefully placed herself on the edge of the hospital bed next to Elijah looking intently at what the little boy was showing her. She was glad she came, once she had gotten home to her mom and dad’s house that night she had started to panic, pacing round her room for what felt like hours.

She didn’t know why she offered to go with Ashlyn, she didn’t know why she felt like she could trust the blonde when they only known each other just under three months. But she did. Today made her realize that she did trust the firefighter and that they were friends.

It scared her that she had come to trust Ashlyn so easily but it also made her proud of herself. She had been trying her hardest to get back to who she was after it had happened, moving back to the states was part of that, and now maybe Ashlyn was too.

Ali gripped the edge of the chair as the thoughts of what happened suddenly came rushing back to her, gritting her teeth and shutting her eyes she tried to think of anything else to distract her. Now wasn’t the time for this to happen, she couldn’t go running to let off some steam and she really didn’t want to have a panic attack.

“Hey,” A soothing voice cut through her thoughts as she forced her eyes open to find Ashlyn crouching down in front of her, being careful not to touch her. Her eye’s flicked behind the blonde to find Elijah engrossed in his coloring book.

“Take a deep breath out,” Ashlyn commanded softly when she noticed that she had at least some of Ali’s attention, “Can you feel your feet on the floor and hands on the arm of the chair,” Ali nodded shakily not really sure what Ashlyn was getting at.

“Okay now just let that ground you,” She continued, “Nobody’s going to hurt you Ali, it’s just you, me and Elijah here. Nobody’s going to hurt you, I promise,”

Ashlyn exhaled in relief as she noticed Ali slowly calming down, when she had looked over at the brunette from where Elijah was mumbling about his colouring book she had instantly realized that the other women was on the verge of having a panic attack.

She knew, from experience, how to deal with it so she did the best she could. She also knew that this must be somehow attached to what happened to Ali. Ashlyn honestly had no idea what had happened and she knew Kyle didn’t either. But what she did know was that it effected Ali greatly and for some reason all Ashlyn wanted to do was help her get over it.

There was potential for her and Ali to become great friends and Ash wanted to make sure that Ali knew that she could trust her because trust is a great foundation to any friendship and maybe if Ali trusts Ashlyn she will let her help her.

“Thank you,” A quite voice brought Ashlyn back to the situation at hand. Ali had mostly calmed down now; her breathing was still slightly erratic but she no longer had wide alarmed eyes.

“You don’t need to thank me Ali, are you okay now?” Ashlyn soothed causing Ali to nod.

Quickly looking over her shoulder at Elijah who wasn’t paying any attention to them, she asked, “Do you want to go get a coffee with me? As a thank you for coming here with me?”

Ali chuckled slightly, “Yes, but I think It’s me that should be buying you the coffee,”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still not as long as usual but I hope you understand!  
> I wasn't going to update today but I got really excited because one of my favorite Tumblr blogs said they loved my stories and I was like woo awesome and got into the mood to write so here it is!
> 
> Tell me what you think! Is it going too fast or too slow?

Ashlyn placed the steaming coffee cup in front of Ali with a smile. After saying goodbye to Elijah and Ashlyn asking Christen to keep her updated if anything happens the two women had made their way to a coffee shop Ashlyn often went to that was a few blocks away from the hospital.

“Thank you, but you should have let me pay for it,” Ali mumbled as she brought the hot cup of coffee to her mouth, almost sighing at how good it tasted.

Waving her off, Ashlyn took a sip out of her own coffee before placing it back down on the table. Luckily the cafe wasn’t that busy so it wasn’t noise with people bustling about everywhere, just how Ashlyn liked it and she thought that Ali would as well. It was one of the reasons she had picked to come here.

“You did something for me today that meant a lot to me and this is a thank you for that so don’t be trying to slip me any money. I know you’re a police officer and everything but I’m still very observant,”

 Ash was trying to ease the tension that was surrounding Ali. She could tell that the woman was beating herself up for allowing her to see her in a weak moment. Ali just gave a small shaky half smile before she took another drink out of her coffee, praying that Ashlyn wouldn’t see the tremble in her hands.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of you know Ali,” Ashlyn stated quietly after a few minutes of them just drinking their coffee in silence, “I mean we’re friends now right and I don’t want you to ever feel ashamed around me.”

Being a very passionate person who thinks friends and family are the most important things someone can have in their life mean that when Ashlyn had friends and they were hurting all she wanted to do was help them and make sure they knew they could be themselves around her.

She had figured out to take a different route with Ali but her instincts were starting to seep through more and more.

Ali wrung her hands around her cup, she could tell that Ashlyn wasn’t lying but she didn’t know if she wanted to believe her. Part of her did, the old Ali, but the other part knew they if she did believe the firefighter then she couldn’t lie to herself anymore about letting Ashlyn in and fully trusting her.

“Thank you,” She ended up whispering, not really sure what else to say.

“Can you tell me what it was like when you first went to Germany? I would never be able to do something like that on my own,” Ashlyn asked hesitantly.

Before now she had bypassed any type of conversation that had to do with Germany but maybe if Ali talked about what Germany was like before whatever terrible thing happened to her then it maybe be some help.

Kyle had told her a few weeks ago when he showed up at her apartment after shift just wanting to talk like he did sometimes whenever he was having problems he would come to Ashlyn and they would talk it through the same way she went to him.

He had told her that he was at a loss of what to do for Ali. He told her how up until Christmas she loved Germany, she would gush about what was happening there to Kyle on the phone and how nice it was until she just stopped. Ashlyn responded that maybe she just needed more time but she couldn’t help but feel guilty for not telling Kyle about her now friendship with Ali. It was probably going to come back and bite her in the ass.

Ashlyn watched as Ali’s eyes seemed to light up for a split second at her question before they dimmed again, it caused her to swallow nervously. She knew that Ali was a beautiful girl but when her eyes lit up and there was a small smile on her face for that split second Ashlyn thought it was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.

“When I first went to Germany I had no idea what I was doing,” Ali admitted with a small shy smile, “I went there, to Frankfurt, a few months before I needed to report to the station so I could find my way around and settle in which was probably the best thing I’ve ever done,” She rand a hand over her hair.

 “I knew some of the language but I wasn’t fluent at that point and kept getting words messed up because I was so nervous. In fact, on my first week there I was getting some coffee and I ended up asking for a cab and not a coffee, it was so embarrassing,” Ali let out a small chuckle, Ashlyn joining her.

“Is it nice there?” Ashlyn continued to question, she could tell by the look in Ali’s eyes that she was reminiscing about her time in Germany before it happened because they looked lighter and it made Ash want her to forget as long as possible.

Ali lent back in her chair with a smile, “It’s beautiful,” Was all she said with a faraway look on her face, “You should go there sometime, I’m sure you would like it,”

“Well you never know, maybe one day I’ll end up there,”

* * *

 

A month later saw Ali getting ready to finally move into her own apartment. The past month she’d been so busy with work and making sure everything was okay with Ashlyn and now Bethany’s statements for the testimony that was coming up that she hadn’t really had time to find a new apartment.

But now things have calmed down and she found an apartment that she had to admit, she loved, it was time to move in. It was weird for her to get her things out of storage and to be able to move some of the things she had left at her parents’ house when she had gone to Germany into her own space.

“What have you got in here Al, rocks?” Kyle huffed as he came through the doorway startling her out of her thoughts. He was complaining about the box he was carrying being heavy yet he was carrying it with ease.

Rolling her eyes Ali took the box from him, “It’s only plates Kyle, I thought you were a firefighter, don’t you lift heavier things?” She teased.

Kyle just smiled not minding the small teasing. This past month Ali had seemed to get a little more back to her old self. It wasn’t much of a change but she seemed to be talking a bit more than she had when she first arrived. It was only this past week that she had been teasing him more that she had done in months.

He quickly turned around and headed out the door saying he was getting another box as tears started to fill his eyes. Brushing past his dad on the stairs making sure to turn his head away from him he finally took a deep breath once he had reached outside.

“Kyle?” A soft voice asked in front of him, looking up he saw him mom stood there with a box in her arms. All he could do was let out a little sob.

Deb instantly dropped the box on the ground, luckily It was only clothes, as she quickly wrapped her arms around her eldest child in a strong hug, “What’s wrong, hunny?” She whispered in his ear as she rubbed his back.

“She’s talking more now and it just made me realize how much I miss her,” He sobbed into her shoulder.

“But she’s here Kyle, you don’t have to miss her anymore,” Deb tried to sooth.

Kyle just hugged his mom tighter, “She’s here physically mom, but she’s not the same as she used to be,”

Deb opened her mouth to say something else but was cut off by a small sob coming from behind her and Kyle.

“I’m sorry,” Ali cried quietly, her shoulders shaking with her sobs. She’d come down just after her mom had embraced Kyle and had heard their conversation.

“Oh Alex,” Deb sniffed letting go of her son to move to her daughter and then wrapping her in an equally as big hug, “You don’t have to be sorry for anything,” She murmured into her daughter’s hair.

“I’m sorry,” she just continued to apologize, sobbing into her mother’s chest, “I didn’t want him to do it, I promise, I didn’t. I’m so sorry,” She just kept mumbling over and over again, grasping her mother’s jacket in her hands tightly.

Deb looked up tears in her eyes as she met Kyle’s eyes who was stood silently crying and then Ken’s who was now stood in the apartment main doorway, pain in his eyes. Deb had no idea what had happened to her daughter in Germany, but she could tell it was breaking her and this wasn’t her breaking point, not yet.

* * *

 

 Ali woke up stifling a scream like she did almost every night. It took her a minuet to remember that she was in her new apartment. It had been a week since she had broken down crying in her mother’s arms but even after all of Deb’s pleading for her to tell her what happened she still hadn’t.

Looking at her alarm on her bedside table she noticed it was half five in the morning. Sighing she grabbed her running gear and headed out of her apartment knowing she wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep.

She was still not very familiar with the area of DC her new apartment was in but that didn’t matter she just went street after street and eventually found her way back. She had been running for around half an hour, focusing on her breathing and her feet hitting the pavement than her thoughts when she heard a voice call her name.

Turning around to see who it was Ali’s eyes widened when she saw Ashlyn sitting on a bench, holding a dog lead tightly to stop the energetic dog she was holding back from running at her.

“Hey,” Ali greeted out of breath as made her way over and sat down on the opposite side of the bench from Ashlyn, “What are you doing out this early?”

“I’m just taking Nutmeg for a walk before shift,” Ashlyn answered patting the puppy on the head, chuckling at how he was trying to get to Ali but couldn’t because Ash was holding him back. He obviously remembered her from their meeting at the park a couple of months ago.

Ali just nodded before she slid to the side on the bench a bit so she could reach Nutmeg, stroking him head and behind his ears as he licked at her hands excitedly.

“What are you doing out this early?” Ashlyn wondered, whilst she had a reason for being out this early she couldn’t think of one for Ali.

Ali sighed leaning back against the bench, “I couldn’t sleep,” She admitted truthfully even though she knew Ashlyn could probably already tell by the bags under her eyes that are almost constantly there.

Ashlyn didn’t say anything. She didn’t know what to say, she didn’t want to scare Ali away by asking if she wanted to talk about it, it may even make it worse so she changed the subject.

“What are you doing round here though, I’ve never seen you here before,” She wondered.

“My new apartment is...,” Ali trailed off not really sure exactly where she had run too, “somewhere around here,” she finished.

Smiling Ashlyn held back a chuckle at how Ali had no idea where she was, “What’s your apartment building called?” She questioned, listening intently when Ali rattled of her address.

“Don’t worry, your building is only a block away from mine, we’re not that far away. I could show you if you like, I don’t think Nutmeg wants to leave you,” She let out a laugh this time at how her dog was still trying to lick Ali’s hand that was now resting on the bench.

Smiling slightly Ali turned to face Ashlyn, “I’d like that,” She spoke softly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a very important tip for everyone!  
> Never break a finger on your dominant hand, it's horrible, I can hardly do anything... My mum had to tie my hair for me for the first time since I was in primary school!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter... so let me know what you think!  
> I was going to update earlier than this but I decided to change some things around. This chapter was also originally longer but I decided to take the last bit out which is going to be the start of the next chapter. Even though that means this is shorter it also means the next update will be quicker:)
> 
> ALSO, there was a bit of a time gap between last chapter and this one but not too long.

As soon as she walked into the police station Ali couldn’t help but roll her eyes, “Does she ever actually do any work?” She asked Heather motioning to Kate who had her uniform shirt buttoned down a few buttons which was against regulation and was leaning over the reception desk seemingly chatting up a random man.

Heather laughed, “Trust me Al, she wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her father, Cap sure doesn’t like her either,”

“Who is her father anyway? Pinoe told me he has friends in high places but she never said who he was,” Ali wondered as they walked into the break room.

“He’s a politician and not one of the good ones,” HAO replied but that was all she said.

Ali sat down on one of the chairs with a groan, he side was hurting and most probably bruised badly from where a young man had pushed her against the patrol car in an attempt to get away from getting arrested. She honestly didn’t know why people did things like that, at first he was only probably going to get time for dealing drugs but now he would also face the repercussions of resisting arrest.

“Ali,” A voice called from the doorway of the break room, “Can I have a word?” Christie asked motioning behind her with her head, signalling that she wanted Ali to come to her office.

Not really thinking anything of it, maybe it was just a check up on how she was doing, Ali gave Heather a smile before following Christie into her office closing the door behind her and taking a seat on the chair Christie was motioning for her to sit on it.

Neither women spoke for a few minutes causing Ali to get antsy, Christie was staring down at her clasped hands like she was unsure of how to start or what to say.

“Ali,” Christie started clearing her throat, “The court date has been finally set,”

Ali could feel herself tense up and her heart start to beat faster but it felt like she couldn’t breathe. She knew that this was going to happen sooner or later but it was still a shock to hear it was actually going to happen.

“I-I-Uh What?” Ali mumbled, she wasn’t sure what to say. She couldn’t believe that this was happening now, when she was just starting to resemble the person she used to be. When she was starting to let people in again.

Christie sighed sympathetically, getting up from her desk chair to move so she was knelt down in front of Ali, cautiously placing her hands on the younger women’s knees. She knew that Ali was going to react this way, to close herself off. She didn’t blame to brunette because it’s exactly the same thing she would do if she was in the situation Ali was in.

“He’s going to trail at the beginning of December, now I know that is quite a long time off from now but they ran into some complications,” Christie informed her, rubbing her knees in a comforting way just like she would do for anyone she cares about.

“Complications?” Ali asked, tears now forming in her eyes, “By complications you mean that they weren’t able to give him an earlier court date and that means he’s been let out on parole,” She looked up to meet Christie’s eyes which caused the tears she was so desperately holding back to fall, Cap didn’t even have to reply Ali could see the answer in her eyes.

Pulling the brunette into a tight hug as she started to cry Christie tried to will her own tears away. It wasn’t fair what happened to Ali, it wouldn’t be fair to anybody, but when it’s someone you know and are close to it just hits you even more harder.

“He’ll go down for this Ali, I promise you he will, I’ve read the files and he will serve the time he deserves,” Christie whispered into her ear whilst she stroked Ali’s hair.

Ali didn’t think that what Cap just said was as comforting as it should be. Yes, he would get the time he deserves but it also meant that Christie knew everything. She knew her boss knew what happened but her having read the files was a whole different thing, she knew every detail of what happened and it scares her.

* * *

 

“Ali?” Ashlyn questioned worriedly as she approached the brunette at the bar later that night. Ali had obviously had quite a lot to drink. Ashlyn could tell by not only the three empty shot glasses in front of her but also by the look Sam shot her as she entered the bar, evidently Ali had been there a while.

Ali didn’t reply but she signaled for Sam to give her another beer. Sam sent another look towards Ashlyn as he slowly started to look around the bar for another beer, purposefully taking his time., serving a few more people who came to the bar before getting Ali’s drink.

“Ali,” Ashlyn stated once again, this time sliding into the bar stool next to Ali, “I don’t really feel like drinking tonight, why don’t we go get a coffee?”

“I don’t want coffee, I want another beer,” Ali replied with a sharp tone. Yes she was drunk.

Ashlyn fiddle with her watch as Sam continued to waste time. She didn’t know what to do, something was defiantly wrong with Ali that much was obvious but she didn’t know how to handle it. Ali wasn’t going to tell her what was wrong Ash knew that, the brunette having only just starting to trust her and think of her as a friend but that didn’t stop her from wanting to help. All she wanted to do was help.

“Why don’t we go back to my place, we can have coffee and if you really want to I do have beer but then your closer to your apartment than you are here and my apartment doesn’t have a closing time,” Ashlyn suggested trying to add a light-hearted joke to diffuse some of the tension flowing from Ali which didn’t seem to work but Ash could tell by the way Ali’s eyes were no longer following Sam around the bar that she was contemplating it.

“Okay,” Ali answered after a few minutes, realizing that Sam wasn’t going to get her another drink.

Ashlyn just nodded pushing herself of the bar to lead Ali out of the bar, nodding to Sam thankfully behind Ali’s back. She was glad Sam didn’t give Ali the drink she was also glad he text her to tell her Ali wasn’t in the best shape.

“Come on,” Ash smiled at Ali reassuringly, “It’s this way,”

Ali sat down on Ashlyn sofa as she watched to blonde try to calm down her puppy. If it was any other day than today she probably would have found the scene amusing having taken a liking to the puppy after the two times she had met him but tonight was different. Tonight she just didn’t want to feel anything.

“So do you want a coffee?” Ashlyn offered once she finally got Nutmeg to settle down and go back to his bed where he had originally been sleeping they came in. Luckily the pup wasn’t as energetic after he had just woken up so it was easier than normal to calm him down.

Ali ignored the offer and got straight to the point, “You said you had beer?”

“Yes,” Ash sighed moving towards her fridge.

Grabbing two beers out of her fridge Ashlyn moved to sit on the opposite end of the sofa from Ali, passing her a beer in the process. She didn’t really want to give Ali any more alcohol but she also knew by mentioning that she had some in her apartment was the only way the brunette was even going to consider leaving the bar.

She could also tell that Ali was hurting, she was hurting more than she usually was and she was trying to escape that by drinking. Ashlyn knew it wasn’t the best thing for Ali but she couldn’t force her to stop, all she could do is make sure the police officer didn’t do anything she regrets and that’s why she brought her back to her apartment.

Ali was halfway through her beer, having been taking large gulps, when she spoke, “They set a court date but it’s in December so they let him out on parole,” She mumbled into the top of her beer.

Ashlyn didn’t know how to answer. She had no idea what Ali was talking about but she also had an inkling that it was about what makes Ali so withdrawn.

“I-“ Ash was about to reply when she got cut off by a sob tearing its way out of Ali causing her heart to clench. Her friend was hurting and she didn’t know what to do. It also let her know that this must be bad since Ali didn’t seem like the type of person to cry in front of people.

Moving slowly so she was sat next to Ali who was now holding her beer like a lifeline as tears continued to stream down her face. All she had to do was cautiously touch Ali’s shoulder and it caused the brunette to quickly turn around and bury her face in Ashlyn’s shirt, her hands curing into the material grasping it tightly.

Ashlyn didn’t need to think anything before she instantly wrapped her arms around the smaller women in an automatic response. This was a big deal. This was a really big deal, not only was Ali initiating physical contact which was something she usually avoided she was letting Ashlyn know that she trusts her more than she lets on.

“Okay okay, shh,” Ashlyn soothed, stroking her hand down Ali’s back in a comforting gesture which caused Ali’s hands to tighten even move on Ash’s shirt.

“You know,” Ashlyn started, she wanted to calm Ali down and the only way she could think of at this moment was just talking,” When I was younger I hit someone in the face with a fish. He was getting on my nerves saying girls can’t surf as good as boys can but I sure showed him, huh?”

“Not one of my best moments I know,” Ashlyn chuckled, “But it’s sure one for the memory tank,” The blonde could feel Ali’s breath starting to slow as her sobs slowed down.

“So I just slapped him in the face with a fish,” She continued, smiling when she heard Ali let out a mixture of a cry and a chuckle, it wasn’t much but it was something.

Ashlyn stopped talking after that, knowing that Ali’s cries were stopping so she just continued to stroke her back as Ali sniffed into her chest.

“I’m not ready to talk about it yet,” Ali mumbled into Ashlyn’s chest, her hands relaxing slightly from where they were grasping Ashlyn’s shirt in a vice grip.

“I know,” Ashlyn breathed, “But when you are. When you are, you can always talk to me and I will always listen, I promise you that,”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so please can y'all read this.  
> Shorter chapter than usual once again but I'm trying to move the story along a bit as well as developing things that need to happen in order for the story to actually progress.
> 
> Someone commented last chapter wondering about some things and I did reply to the comments but I also wanted to clear things out here so everyone can see.
> 
> Cap knows about the court date mentioned last chapter because she is in touch with Ali's boss in Germany, and the person mentioned has been let out of prison until his court date due to complications (That will be explained)  
> I don't know how the German police force works or even American because I am English but for the sake of the story they do have parole and Ali can work there without a German citizenship.
> 
> Sorry if all this was confusing! Enjoy and tell me if you think it's moving too fast or too slow or whatever!

“Nutmeg no!” Ashlyn hissed trying her best to quietly tame her wild puppy, it wasn’t working.

“Nutmeg you have to be quite you don’t want to wake Ali up she needs the sleep,” She crouched down and whispered before rolling her eyes and standing back up, she was talking to a puppy like he knew what she was saying.

Ali couldn’t help but smile slightly, she had been awake for a while but Ashlyn hadn’t realized that. Nowadays she never gets a full night’s sleep always waking up due two various reasons but mainly it was the nightmares that often control her sleep patterns.

She used to sleep through the night before it happened, she wasn’t a necessarily deep sleeper quite the opposite in fact but she always managed to sleep peacefully through the night without interruptions. Now she can’t.

When she woke up the first time at around three she had no idea where she was and who’s couch she was sleeping on until it all came flooding back to her. That was also when the embarrassment started. She couldn’t believe she had actually taken Ashlyn’s offer up to come to her apartment just because she wanted more alcohol.

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to go to Ashlyn’s apartment, that was generally what friends tended to do and Ali could no longer keep denying to herself that they were not friends. In fact, Ali was becoming to realize that they were starting to become rather close friends, if last night was any indication.

She felt guilty that she had used her friend like that but she also felt even more guilty that when she went out yesterday she didn’t go out for a casual drink, she went out to drink to forget. After everything that happened with Kyle when they were younger she promised herself she wouldn’t drink to forget, she wouldn’t drink just so she didn’t feel anything.

Even after it had happened she hadn’t done these things but last night she did, she did them both and not only did it not work at all she also broke a promise to herself.

“Do you have any idea of how funny you look?” Ali finally spoke up after watching Ashlyn make funny faces at her puppy and weird hand gestures from her place curled up on Ashlyn’s couch where she had fallen asleep the night before.

Ashlyn shot up from where she was crouched down in front of Nutmeg making funny faces to try and keep the puppy’s attention from jumping on the couch and on Ali, who she had thought was still asleep.

“Your awake!” Ash smoothed her hair back from where it was probably flying out of the bun she had put in last night before she went to sleep, “Did you sleep okay, I know by couch standards it’s actually pretty comfy,” She smiled.

Ali sighed but surprisingly she didn’t feel the need to lie to Ashlyn like she would if anyone else was asking,” No I didn’t but that’s not because your sofa isn’t comfy,” She smiled back sadly.

Ashlyn’s smile fell but she quickly pulled it back up as if nothing had happened, “I would have offered you my bed and I could have slept on the sofa but I didn’t want to wake you up, you looked tired,”

“I am,” Was all Ali said throwing Ashlyn for a loop the second time in practically just a minute.

“Oh urm, do you want something to eat I have some uh” The blonde nervously spoke, her hand tightly clutching Nutmeg’s collar who was desperate to get loose as she walked over to the fridge” bread... we can have toast? Or cereal. Or better yet we can go out and get some breakfast,”

Ashlyn honestly didn’t know why she was rambling so much, maybe it was the presence or a pretty girl in her apartment so early in the morning even though when that had happened in the past it had never phased her before but maybe that was because the actions the night before had been different from what had happened between her and Ali.

“There’s a nice cafe around the corner, I go there a lot, I think you would like it. It sells really good coffee,” Ashlyn carried on before Ali had a chance to speak up.

“That’s fine with me, can I use your bathroom?”

Ashlyn nodded turning back to her fridge to get a bottle of water when she realized Ali didn’t know where her bathroom was. Spinning back around to find a beheaded Ali stood there with a raised eyebrow causing her to blush.

“It’s just down the hall, the first door on the left,” She smiled sheepishly causing Ali to nod and head for the bathroom.

Once Ali reached the bathroom and shut the door she lent back against it and took a deep breath before moving towards the counter and leaning against that to look in the mirror. She still had her usual bags under her eyes but they had seemed to lessened.

Ali knew that was because unlike she usually does she didn’t get up early morning to go for a run since she couldn’t fall back asleep. She didn’t know whether that was because she was too hungover or the fact that she knew Ashlyn was in the other room and didn’t want the blonde to wake up to find her gone.

Sighing she ran the tap so she could wash her face, all the while still not taking her eyes of her reflection. She was still shocked that they let him out of prison, she knew that whatever complications that had arisen for him to be let out of prison till his court date, which had been moved back a lot more than it should have, were all due to him. He was a police officer after all.

* * *

 

“Here you go, our food should be here soon,” Ashlyn smiled placing their coffee’s down on the table which she had just bought at the counter.

Ali smiled back gratefully, taking a sip out of her coffee, “You know the two times we have gotten coffee now you have paid and now you’re also paying for breakfast as well. You should let me pay sometime,”

Laughing Ashlyn sat down in her sear, “I don’t pay because I have to Ali, I pay because I want too,”

“Thank you,” Ali said seriously, not smiling anymore.

“It’s only coffee and breakfast Ali, don’t worry about it,” Ashlyn stated, drinking her own coffee.

“No,” Ali refuted, “I mean thank you for last night, not just for getting me out of the bar which I am grateful for but for also comforting me, I know we may not be that close of friends but I really appreciate it,” She finished insecurely.

Ashlyn shifted forward in her seat so she could look Ali straight in the yes, “We are Ali. We are that close of friends, at the moment I think your becoming one of my closest friends,” Ash truthfully replied her already naturally soft voice even softer.

Ali allowed a smile to grace her face as they shifted into a silence that was only natural to them,” So, did you really slap someone in the face with a fish?” Ali questioned after a while causing Ashlyn to burst out laughing and a grin to make its way onto her own face.

* * *

 

 “You know,” Ashlyn stated quietly, running her fingertips along the edge of the bar, “Even though we have been friends for a while now, I don’t have your phone number,”

Ali raised an eyebrow,” Are you asking for my number Ashlyn?” She asked bluntly.

“Well yeah,” Ashlyn laughed, she thought she was being smooth but obviously not, “Like I said we’ve been friends for a while and I genuinely have all my friends phone numbers. Plus, what if I get into trouble and need my favorite police officers help again?”

“Okay, I’ll give you my number on one condition,” Ali bargained even though she would have given Ash her number even if she didn’t agree to her condition but the firefighter didn’t need to know that.

“Deal,” Ashlyn agreed, sticking her hand out for Ali to shake.

Rolling her eyes at Ashlyn’s teasing Ali took her hand, grasping it tightly to make sure the other women winced but not tight enough for it to hurt, “You didn’t even hear what I had to say?”

“I’m sure It will be fine, what do you want me to do, you want to see Nutmeg more, I know you have a soft spot for him?”

“No,” Ali said after laughing, turning serious once again, “I want you to never get into a situation where you need my help as a police office again, okay?”

Swallowing Ashlyn agreed, “Okay, but what about if I need you as a friend,”

Ali hesitated slightly, “Then I’m here if you want to talk,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I also have tumblr btw! Come find me at alexbkrieger11


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I've been distracted watching the Olympic's!
> 
> Okay so I asked y'all last chapter whether you think this is going too slow or not just too see what you think and there was a mixed response.   
> This story is slow burn. Which is probably should be obvious with the nature of the story. Something happened to Ali that made her not want to be close to people and trust them so she isn't about to be jumping into a relationship with a hot blonde firefighter. Plus at this point in the story she think's she is 'straight' so I'm sorry if it's moving too slow for some but it's necessary to the story and wouldn't work or be realistic love story otherwise. 
> 
> Another short one, trying to move it along a bit quicker because it seems some people are getting bored but I need get a few things out of the way before I start speeding up any more and that is what these short chapters are doing.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Hey,” A deep voice startled Ali out of her thoughts. Tilting her head to see a grinning, rather cockily, man had slide up next to her seat at the bar.

“Oh uhrm, hey,” She replied after realizing she couldn’t just ignore him, she was used to men hitting on her in bars it had been a regular thing until recently but that was probably because almost every time she was at the bar nowadays she was with Ashlyn, who was actually running late.

The man smiled even wider at the sound of her voice, “What is a pretty girl like you doing sitting at the bar all on your own,” He flirted.

Ali did her best to hold back the eye roll that was threatening to happen, “I’m waiting for someone,” She shrugged, opting to tell the truth but not the whole truth of the person she was waiting for was just a friend.

“Well can I sit with you while you wait?” The man didn’t wait for Ali to reply before he sat down on the empty bar stool next to hers, Ashlyn’s seat to be exact which for some reason got on her nerves.

She was also starting to feel uncomfortable, in the bored way she had replied she thought that she had made it clear to the man that she really wasn’t interested into anything he had to offer. Glancing down the bar to see if she could locate Sam so her could help her but he was busy serving others at the opposite end of the bar.

“So I’m Steve and you are?” The man, now identified as Steve, questioned.

“Not interested,” A voice she had become very familiar with these past couple of months spoke from over her shoulder causing Ali to let out a sigh of relief. She knew exactly who it was.

Steve didn’t look phased though as he casually raised an eyebrow whilst turning to look at the women stood behind Ali, the brunette turning to look at Ashlyn as well.

“Oh yeah. And who is she interested in, you?” Steve laughed loudly, taking a sip out of his beer. He was obviously rather tipsy.

Ashlyn sighed in annoyance. She was running late due to her shift running over which meant she couldn’t make the time her and Ali normally met in the bar on Friday’s. Over the past few weeks depending on what shifts they were working they would meet up for coffee a few times during the week, Ali no longer wanting to go to the Sam’s bar on weekdays, and then go to the bar on Friday nights if they weren’t roped into hanging out with other people.

When she walked into the bar, slightly out of breath from speed walking from her apartment after dropping her Jeep off, Ash instantly spotted Ali and knew something was wrong. The police officer’s shoulders were tenser than normal and she seemed slightly hunched over the bar. It didn’t take her long to figure out that it was due to the man who seemed to be talking to her as well as leaning into her personal space, which Ali didn’t like at all.

Ash didn’t really think before she was marching over there to interrupt the conversation, well the man’s attempt at hitting on Ali. The only thought that was actually running through her head was the need to protect Ali, which she told herself she would do this for any of her friends if they needed help.

“Whoever she is interested in, it sure is not you,” Ashlyn countered, crossing her arms across her chest, her arm muscles bulging in an attempt to look more intimidating.

“Look,” Steve held his hand out in front of himself, “I’M sure that she doesn’t swing your way so why don’t you go and hit on some other girl and leave this one to me,” He smirked.

Ashlyn held back a growl at the man’s words, her annoyance growing into anger,” Listen here asshole I have a few things to tell you, “She didn’t wait to make sure Steve was listening before she continued.

“First things first, women are not objects so stop treating them like they are. Second thing I won’t ‘leave this one to you’ because ‘this one’ happens to be my best friend and I can assure you she is not interested in some lowlife like you that doesn’t know when to back the fuck off,”

She was holding nothing back now, knowing that Ali had a hard time trust people and being herself around them let her know that she wouldn’t like this asshole trying to stake his claim on her, “So why don’t you leave us alone, get out of my seat and go before I get you thrown out.”

She lent down so she was closer to Steve who was staring at her with wide eyes, “I know the owner, “She tried to whisper menacingly.

Steve just nodded, not wanting to get thrown out and moved on to another side of the bar, shooting Ashlyn a dirty look as he left.

“Thank you,” A soft voice startled Ashlyn out of where she was glaring back at the man, turning round she came face to face with a grateful looking Ali. Her eye’s softening Ashlyn aloud a smile to appear on her face finally.

“That’s okay that’s what friends are for,” Ashlyn tried to play it off as she sat in her usual bar stool, the one Steve had been sat on.

Ali looked to be deep in thought for a few seconds,” That’s what best friends are for, right?” She asked hesitantly.

It was no lie that her and Ashlyn had gotten very close over these last couple of months, Ali now saw her as someone she was go to if she wanted to talk about things, Ashlyn didn’t demand to know what happened and had no real clue but she still listened to Ali without complaining. But they have never really talked about being best friends before.

“Yes, you are my best friend Al, I thought that would be pretty obvious by now, I mean I don’t just spend all this time with you because you’re a pretty face,” Ashlyn tried to joke.

“you are my best friend too Ashlyn, thank you for being patient with me,”

Ashlyn smiled and said nothing as she signaled for Sam to get her a beer. There wasn’t anything that needed to be said. She was glad that Ali had let her in as much as she had because she seemed to be getting happier and that’s what Ashlyn wanted.

“So…” Ash drawled out slowly a few minutes later, “What that man said about you not swinging this way, Ali..”

She went to continue but got cut of by Ali who had placed her hand on top of hers on the bar, “I already know that your gay Ashlyn,” Ali stated softly.

“And that doesn’t bother you?” Ash swallowed nervously.

Ali chuckled slightly, “You do remember who my brother is right?

Ashlyn was momentarily blindsided at the sound of Ali’s chuckle. The brunette had started laughing and chuckling more and more and it made Ashlyn smile. When she had first heard Ali’s laugh she could have sworn her heart had stopped beating for a second.

“How could I forget,” Ashlyn laughed, “Oh! You know who that guy reminded me of? Jack.

Ali let out a laugh and Ashlyn felt her breath catch in her throat. She definitely had a crush on her best friend. She was screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me on tumblr at alexbkrieger11


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here you go!
> 
> Next chapter will be longer and maybe up tomorrow.  
> Tell me what you think...

Ashlyn put the magazine she was reading on the table in front of her, leaning back into the sofa to stretch her shoulders.

“Nothing worse than a quite shift that drags on,” Kyle commented with a grin as he sat himself down next to Ashlyn, resting his arm along the back of the sofa.

“You don’t need to tell me that,” Ashlyn groaned rubbing a hand on her face. The shift today seemed to be dragging more than usual but maybe that was because they had two days off after this since they had pulled a double so now they had Sunday and Monday off.

Kyle smiled, “So, what are you going to do on our oh so sacred days off?” He wondered.

“I don’t know, maybe take Nutmeg for a walk, spend some time with some friends,” Ashlyn laughed.

“Friends?” Kyle joked, “I didn’t know you had friends outside the firehouse,” He teased.

Ashlyn tried to not feel guilty about still not having told him that her best friend was his sister. It wasn’t that she didn’t think Kyle would react well, which he may not do, it was just she wanted to keep her and Ali’s friendship just to themselves. Just for a little while longer.

She didn’t really know why she wanted to keep their friendship a secret for a while longer. Maybe it was because Kyle would probably grill her about what was wrong with Ali and when he found out she didn’t know he would probably want her to find out. Ashlyn knew though he would just be looking out for his sister.

“Your joking right? Harris is practically married to her job and doesn’t have any friends outside the fire house, well if you can call her random hook-ups friends then maybe she does,” A Voice interrupted them as Jack came to sit on the opposite sofa from them with a cocky grin.

Resisting the urge to scowl Ashlyn resorted to just laugh it off, “Jack, I really don’t hook up with as many people as you think I do,”

“Oh really? When’s the last time you hooked up with someone?” Jack asked with a smug grin, Kyle sitting up slightly from his slouched position in interest.

Ashlyn shifted nervously on the sofa. She could lie but that would probably come back to bite her in the ass but the truth would also bring on an onslaught of questions she didn’t want to answer; questions she honestly wasn’t ready to answer.

“Actually it was months ago, “She admitted knowing that it was probably for the best to tell the truth. She could see Jack’s eyebrows rise in surprise even though Kyle didn’t look surprised.

“Your shitting me,” Jack laughed it off, annoyed that she had one upped him.

“I’m not,” Ash said seriously, wanting to roll her eyes.

Recently Jack had started to annoy her more than usual. She used to be able to tolerate him because he did have some genuine moments but now she was friends with Ali and how he constantly objectifies her when Kyle isn’t in the room and sometimes even when he is. It just grates at her nerves.

“Why haven’t you then? What happened to the party animal you used to be, eh?”

This time Ash did roll her eyes, what a jackass, “Jack you have been out with me like four times, I’m really not as bad as you make me out to be. I just like to have fun occasionally,”

Jack huffed, realizing the conversation wasn’t going his so he decided to change the conversation, “Hey Kyle, Ali has only been round here once since she’d been back and that wasn’t even to see you. Also, she’s been back months,”

“She doesn’t need to come round here to see me, I see her at least once a week if not more,” Kyle explained. They had had this exact conversation more than once before.

“Well what about if other people at the house want to see her? She used to be around here all the time when was in the academy and worked in DC,” Jack rebutted with a smirk.

Ashlyn shifted once again in her seat. She knew that Jack had a very obvious thing for Ali anyone could see it, in fact her, Tobin, Alex and Kelley had a conversation about it after Ali had come to the fire station wanting to talk to Ashlyn about the case.

She had gotten curious about the history between Jack and Ali. Ali had looked like she didn’t like his advance but she also looked like she was used to it. After their conversation Ash had found out that Jack has had a major crush on Ali since he first met her but Ali didn’t share the same feelings.

That didn’t stop Jack though. He wanted her as another notch on his bedpost which was the type of guy he was. Her being his friend’s sister which generally means off limits but that just tempts him even further.

“Look,” Kyle turned serious, “I’ve told you before that Ali has changed. She is never going to sleep with you Jack no matter how hard you try so why don’t you just leave her alone,” He was getting annoyed and really angry at his friend’s continuous questions about where Ali is and whether she has a boyfriend or not.

“You don’t know that,” Jack tried to defend himself, a flush appearing on his face as he stood up from the sofa, “Who wouldn’t want me,” He finished as he walked away from them without even a goodbye.

Pulling her hair out of its bun so she could run a hand through her tangled hair Ashlyn sighed. She really couldn’t wait for this shift to be over, especially after that.

“I really wish he would stop talking about Alex like that. I mean who talks about someone’s sister that way in front of their brother,” Kyle grumbled, taking a sip out of the forgotten coffee he had brought with him.

“I wish he would stop too,” Ashlyn muttered before she could stop herself, freezing slightly when she felt Kyle’s gaze turn from his coffee to her.

“I know why I want him to stop,” He started, “Why do you want him to stop,”

Ashlyn waved him off with a laugh but was afraid he would notice how nervous she had become, “Your sister seems nice the times I have spoken to her and Jack is really being too much. I mean you could see how much she didn’t like him when she came to talk to me about testifying and he was just talking to her then. He’s blind to the fact she doesn’t like him at all,” She ended up ranting.

Kyle felt his eyebrows raise in surprise as he listens to Ashlyn to continue to rant on about Jack objectifying women and how women shouldn’t be treated that way, “You know Ash. You and Ali would make good friends,”

Now it was Ashlyn’s turn to be surprised but she hid it well, “Really?” She asked trying to hide her grin.

Kyle just nodded before going back to his coffee and pulling out his phone.

* * *

 

Ashlyn sighed happily as she woke up at half ten the next morning. Stretching her arms above her head and rotating her neck to work out the cricks she noticed Nutmeg just sat there staring at her from the bottom of her bed. Pausing and looking straight back at him Ashlyn held back a laugh.

“Come on then buddy,” She gave in after a few minutes of staring, watching as Nutmeg excitedly jumped on the bed waggling his tail and coming to lick her face.

“Good morning to you too,” This time Ashlyn did laugh, “Okay okay, that’s enough,” She stated, pushing the puppy away from her slightly but he didn’t seem bothered and instead jumped on her stomach.

Rolling her eyes playfully, Ashlyn reached over to grasp her phone from her bedside table where it was plugged in.

“Huh, looks like we have a text message from Ali,” She smiled, reaching over with her free hand to scratch behind Nutmeg’s ear who was now sat on her stomach, he had perked up at the mention of Ali’s name.

_I have nothing to do. AK_

Ashlyn read the text with a smile. This past week Ali had started texting her at random times with random things. Looking at the time stamp for the message Ashlyn felt her eyebrows raise in surprise. 5:56am.

_Sorry slept in. What are you doing today? AH_

She replied when an idea popped into her head. Deciding to get up and make a coffee while she waited for Ali’s reply. She had just sat down on her sofa and flicked her TV when her phone buzzed with another message. She was pleasantly surprised since Ali’s response time tend to vary dramatically and this was a quick answer for her.

_Currently nothing_ _L_ _AK_

Ashlyn smiled to herself triumphantly.

_You are now. I’ll pick you up in an hour, dress like you would if we were going jogging_ _J_ _AH_

After typing her reply Ashlyn jumped up from her sofa, leaving her coffee forgotten as she headed for a shower to get ready to pick Ali up. Her smile never leaving her face the whole time.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG, I thought there was a possibility I could update today but I wasn't sure but here it is!  
> Longest chapter in a while!  
> Enjoy..tell me what you think!

Ashlyn tapped on her steering wheel, humming happily to herself as she waited for Ali to come down from her apartment. She had texted the brunette as soon as she pulled up. She would have preferred to actually go to Ali’s door but she didn’t know which floor or number it was since she had only walked Ali to the door of her building that time.

She was that lost in humming that when a knock came on the passenger side window she jumped embarrassingly. Smiling sheepishly, she turned to find Ali stood at the window with a half smirk on her face.

“Hey,” She smiled as she reached over to open the door for Ali, she always had them locked so people couldn’t get in from the outside whilst she was in the car.

“Hey,” Ali mumbled sliding into the seat and fastening her seat belt, “So where are we going?” She questioned as Ashlyn started the jeep.

“You’ll see,” Ashlyn answered mysteriously causing Ali to let a small smile grace her face.

Running a hand through her hair, which was down at the moment, Ali still didn’t let it go, “You really aren’t going to tell me? You’re not kidnapping me are you?” She joked.

Ashlyn shot her an incredulous look,” Yes that’s it, I’m kidnapping you,” She laughed,” No, who in the right mind would kidnap a police officer,”

“You’re right that would be stupid,” Ali sassed.

Ashlyn chuckled. It didn’t happen often that Ali was sassy but when it did it amused her a lot, she also loved it. She loved how Ali was slowly becoming a different person, she was become the person she used to be. Ash didn’t feel like Ali needed to change tough to be liked. She may be withdrawn but her personality still seems to shine through at times.

After a few minutes of driving Ashlyn heard Ali huff beside her and couldn’t help but grin. She was starting to learn that the brunette was very impatient and if she wanted to know something she wouldn’t stop until she found out, that’s probably why she was an amazing police officer.

“You can sigh all you want Princess, I’m still not telling you anything,” Ashlyn laughed at the expression on Ali’s face.

“Princess?” Ali sent a look at Ashlyn at the name she called her, it wasn’t something she had been called before, well she had been but not just Princess. She didn’t think she would but she actually likes it.

“Well your acting like one,” Ashlyn teased, “And your nails are painted pink, so you must be a pretty pink princess, “She tilted her head in the direction of Ali’s newly painted nails.

“Pretty pink princess? I’ll let you know Ashlyn Harris that I am a bad-ass,”

“Oh, I don’t doubt it,” Ashlyn winked before leaning over to flick the radio to life, instantly rapping to the song that came on causing Ali to burst out in laughter.

Ali listened to Ashlyn belt out lyrics as the jeep rolled to a stop. Looking out of the window she noticed that they were at the local rec center.

“Thank God that’s over,” Ali said mockingly when Ashlyn cut the engine causing the radio to turn off.

“Haha, don’t think I didn’t hear you singing along,” Ashlyn rebutted with a one dimpled smile.

Ali rolled her eyes, “What are we doing here anyway?”

“Well, you had nothing to do so I wanted to share with you what I do when I have free time. I come here most weeks and play soccer or basketball or any other sport really with the kids that come here. It’s a place in the community where underprivileged kids can come to get off the streets and just have somewhere they can stay safe,” Ashlyn told Ali, a small sad smile now gracing her face instead of a grin.

“Well then, what are we waiting for,” Ali let out a smile.

“That’s the spirit,” Ashlyn laughed as she jumped out of the jeep, Ali following.

* * *

 

As they walked into the center Ali couldn’t help but look around in awe. It was bigger than she expected it to be, a lot bigger. There was everything you could think, an area cornered of with ramps for children with bikes and skateboard, there were pools tables, basketball courts, a small shop and anything you could really think of.

“Wow,” Ashlyn breathed as her gaze continued to sweep across the large room. It was like a warehouse; how had she not know this was here before, “How did they pay for all this,”

“Actually it’s a mixed effort between the government and a man called Jim who owns and runs the place. It started off a lot smaller than this and not even in this building. Jim had come into some money and wanted to do something about getting kids of the street and out of danger,” Ashlyn took a deep breath.

“His brother was killed at sixteen in a gang related incident,” She told Ali as they continued to stroll through the large room.

“And he finally though enough is enough, set up a place with Ping-Pong tables and gaming stations, that was literally it, for kids to come and surprisingly a lot did. Then the government got wind of this and started to fund it even more and now look what it has become,”

Ali was speechless, “Wow. This is amazing,”

“I know,” Ashlyn smiled widely before speeding up and leading Ali over to the skate ramps when she spotted two people skating there, “Come on Al, I want you to meet some people,”

Ali followed behind Ashlyn, still slightly in shock at the building and the story behind it, as they came closer the skate park section of the building Ali could clearly make out two teenagers, a boy and a girl, skating who seemed to be bickering at the same time.

“Hey guys,” Ash greeted as she stood at the edge of the concrete.

“Ash!” The boy cheered as he came to a halt in front of them, the girl coming not that far behind him, both of them smiling from ear to ear, “You finally got a day off!” The boy continued.

The girl rolled her eyes, adjusting her helmet on her head, “Obviously Jay or else she wouldn’t be here,”

Ashlyn laughed at the banter that was usual there between the two teenagers. They were best friends but they argued like an old married couple and it amused Ashlyn to no end. Opening her mouth to introduce Ali she got cut of when Jay beat her too it.

“Is this your girlfriend Ash?” Jay questioned with a toothy grin, taking his helmet off to run a hand through his untamed brown hair.

Ali could feel a flush spreading up her neck and onto her face. She didn’t know why but someone thinking she was Ashlyn’s girlfriend made her feel… weird. She couldn’t explain it and she definitely didn’t understand it but she brushed it of for now.

“Oh no.” Ashlyn laughed nervously, rubbing at the back of her neck,” This is my best friend Ali,” She pointed to Ali as if the two teenagers didn’t know who she was talking about.

“Ali, these two knuckleheads are Natasha and Jayden but they prefer to be called Jay and Tasha,” Ashlyn introduced the three.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Ali let out a rare nose crinkling grin, she felt, for some reason, completely at ease around the three even though she had literally just met two of them.

Ashlyn clapped her hands together excitedly, “So you guys ready to play some soccer,” She looked around at the three of them getting nods and a request from Jay if they could practice penalties before the two teenagers ran off in front of them to the soccer pitch leaving Ali and Ashlyn trailing behind them watching as the teenagers playfully shoved each other out of the way.

Ashlyn watched with a smile. She always loved coming to the center for many reasons, one of them being that she had met some great people their not only the kids but also the people that like to come and help. Jim was also a really nice man who came to help out himself as much as he could.

She also like all for what the center stood for. She knew that Ali, being a police officer, would appreciate and know how important the center is because she would had probably dealt with some crime involving children.

“So,” Ashlyn side eyed Ali, “When I used to play, I was a goalkeeper,”

“Hmm,” Ali hummed, “I can kind of see that, you don’t look like you would have been a field player, plus I saw a picture of you in a goalkeeper kit in your apartment so I already knew that,” She teased, her arm brushing against Ashlyn tattooed one.

Rolling he eyes Ashlyn questioned, “What position did you play?”

Ali nodded,” I played defense. But I obviously stopped,”

“Why did you stop playing?” Ali wondered, slowing down her pace so they had longer to talk before they reached the soccer pitch. She was genuinely curious about why Ashlyn had stopped playing, they hadn’t really talked about it before other than her telling the blonde why she stopped that time they watched a NWSL match in the bar.

 “I tore my ACL, made it back, then tore the other one and made it back again but I guess other things had caught my attention by then and I was more focused on becoming a firefighter than I was on soccer. But soccer will always have a place in my heart,” She retold the story of how she tore her ACL’s as they came to a stop at end of the soccer pitch. Jay and Tasha playing around with a ball at the opposite goal.

Ali didn’t hesitate as she placed a hand on Ashlyn shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly when she saw the pain in the blonde’s eyes, “Sometimes it just isn’t meant to be but the things you gained from the experience will stay with you forever. Also, if you had continued playing soccer you wouldn’t be where you are now. I mean look at you a lifesaving firefighter, you should be proud of yourself Ash,”

Ashlyn turned round so she was facing Ali front on, her eyes meeting Ali’s sad shining one as she placed her hand on top of Ali’s on her shoulder.

“You should be proud of yourself to Ali, I mean you say have you seen me? Well have you seen yourself, you’re a bad-ass police officer who fights crime for a living,” Ashlyn took a deep breath, “Something terrible happened to you but you are so strong, one of the strongest people I know,”

“I will tell you what happened Ash,” Ali tensed up but relaxed slightly when Ashlyn’s hand tightened on her own in a comforting way, “You’re the one person I’ve even though about telling, just not yet.”

Smiling softly Ashlyn replied, “Whenever you’re ready, Alex,” The nickname she heard Kyle call Ali before slipping out before she could stop herself but Ali didn’t look annoyed, in fact, she looked relieved.

Flashing her own smile Ali moved her hand from on Ashlyn’s shoulder and started to jog over to Tasha and Jay, “Are you two ready to kick her ass?”

“Woah Ali!” Ashlyn shouted jogging up behind her, “They’re children,” She teased.

* * *

 

“Thank you for taking me here today,” Ali thanked as she slides into the jeep three hours later, very sweaty, “I liked Jay and Tasha they seem like really good kids,”

“It was my pleasure,” Ash replied truthfully, buckling her belt,” They are awesome aren’t they,”

She was glad that she had invited Ali to come out with her today, when she had thought of the idea she knew it was a good one but now it wasn’t just a good idea it was an excellent one. This way she could share something with Ali that she hadn’t shared with anyone before.

Sure her friends knew that she came to the center nearly every week but she had taken one of them with her before. It was something that was special to her and today she shared that special thing with Ali and it made her heart swell at the thought of it.

Seeing Ali today with an excited smile and her eyes glistening happily made Ashlyn realized that it was something special for Ali as well. It also made her realize that she definitely had more than a crush on her best friend.

It became rather obvious when she found herself following a bead of sweat make its way down the side of Ali’s face instead of focusing on where the defender was going to send her ball causing it to result in a goal. She didn’t really know how to feel; Ali was her best friend. She was straight.

It wasn’t only that either. Ashlyn hadn’t felt like this in a long time, she hadn’t had a serious relationship in all her time in DC. It made her sad that the one person she actually maybe wanted to be in a relationship with she has no chance at all. But she was okay with just being Ali’s best friend as long as she can be around her.

“Can I ask you a question?” Ali wondered when they were almost back at her apartment.

“You just did,” Ashlyn joked cornily, “Of course you can,”

Rolling her eyes Ali asked, “How come you started coming to the center?” The thought had been running around her head the whole time they had been in the center and she couldn’t help but ask.

“Well, I saw a leaflet in the Hospital when one of the crew broke their leg and I was checking on them. It was spreading the news about the center and it just struck at me, you know?” She took a deep breath.

“The center is something that I would have done anything for when I was a teenager. I was one of them kids they were targeting, I didn’t have the best family life I used to go out on the streets and mess around with people I probably shouldn’t have. I mean I pulled myself together just before I went to college but my childhood would have been a lot better if I had something like the center so that’s why I wanted to help the best I could,” She paused for a second to let what she said sink in, turning her head slightly to find Ali smiling softly at her reassuringly.

“The first time I went Jim was there, he found me stood there looking like a lost puppy and asked if there was anything he could help with. I told him no and that I came to help because I would have loved somewhere like this when I was younger. That’s when he told me who he was and the story behind the center and the rest is history,” Ash smiled.

Ali put her hand on top of Ashlyn’s on the gear shift, their hands touching for the second time that day,” You’re a good person Ashlyn, I’m honored to be your best friend, thank you for sharing that with me” She smiled.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I'm trying to update as many time I can before I go on holiday on Thursday!
> 
> I'm also trying to move things along as fast as I can but I also want to give y'all a heads up that Ashlyn is going to find out what happened to Ali soon... as in soon I mean in these upcoming chapters. I think it's around about time for her to find out to get it moving along.
> 
> Tell me what you think!

Ashlyn walked into the center on a Friday dinner time, her skateboard underneath her arm as she made her way to the ramps, smiling when she noticed Jay practicing tricks there but this time he was on a his old beat up BMX and not his skateboard.

“Hey dude,” She greeted, not going on her board just yet and opting to sit down on one of the concrete blocks used as a ramp.

“Hey!” Jay exclaimed surprised coming to a skidding halt in front of Ashlyn before taking of his helmet and placing it on his handlebars, the smile never leaving his face.

“Where’s Tasha?” Ashlyn wondered, it was unusual for the two not to be together.

Jay rolled his eyes, “Her mom roped her into babysitting her brother while she goes out on a date with some guy,” He pulled a face,” I’m heading over there later though, gonna take my new FIFA game so we can all play together,”

Ashlyn nodded in understanding. She had met both Tasha and Jay’s moms before at the times when the center had events to promote bonding between parents and their children, they were both lovely people and loved their kids but they also had money problems.

They were both nurses at the same hospital and that’s how Tasha and Jay had met when they were younger at the day-care there when they were too young to go to school. Tasha’s family was quite well off until her father left them when she was ten, disappearing without saying where he was going and almost emptying out their bank account in the process.

Jay’s family was a whole different situation she knew his mom was a nurse but his dad was a soldier, who was gone for months at a time, leaving Jay and his mom to look after his three younger and struggle to pay the rent. It wasn’t that his dad was a bad person he really wasn’t from what she had heard they were a loving family who struggled when he isn’t there.

“You finally got it!” Ashlyn cheered, he had been saving up for the new FIFA game since before it came out, putting aside some money that he eared working at the local cinema for that and then the rest away into his savings.

“Yeah! I got it today after school! I can’t wait to play it, I haven’t told Tasha I got it so she’s going to be so excited when she finds out,” He shrugged like it was no big deal but Ashlyn could see in his eyes how much it meant too him, “Hey what are you doing here on a Friday anyway?” He wondered as an afterthought.

“Me and Ali were supposed to go out tonight, we always do on Friday’s it’s like a weakly thing but she had to change shifts at work,” Ashlyn sighed, she was disappointed that she wasn’t going to see Ali today but she knew it couldn’t be helped if she had to swap shifts.

It was weird in the just about five months they had known each other, Ali moving back to the US mid-May and it was now November they had seen each other almost every Friday night. Ashlyn struggled to remember what it was like not meeting Ali at the bar even when they didn’t even plan to do it, it just sort of happened.

Jay looked like he was thinking hard for a few seconds before he decided to reply, “Shifts? Is she a firefighter like you? That’s so hot! No pun intended,” He chuckled at his joke.

“No she’s not a firefighter, she’s a police officer,” Ashlyn corrected him, eyebrows raised in amusement.

Jay almost feel off his BMX he sat up that quickly from where he was leaning his head on his arms that were resting on the handlebars, steadying himself he exclaimed, “She’s a police officer! Forget what I said about her being a firefighter hot! That’s even more hotter! She carried a gun and handcuffs! She gets to arrest people!”

If this was Jack talking about Ali in this way Ashlyn would have been ready to punch his lights off but she knew that Jay didn’t mean it in the same way Jack did. For one Jay was a teenager and had hormones that he probably couldn’t control, he would never actually hit on Ali and plus he had a crush on Tasha even if he didn’t know that yet.

“Well yeah, she gets to arrest people,” Ashlyn chuckled.

Jay smiled widely before he quickly hopped of his BMX, placing it down on the floor not too gently at all as he came to sit on the concrete box next to Ashlyn, the blonde moving her skateboard so he could sit down. When he was sat down Jay leaned forward with his elbows on his knees as she rested his head on his knuckled, staring at Ash without blinking.

“So, you gonna ask her to be your girlfriend or what?” He asked seriously, studying Ashlyn’s face.

If she had been drinking water right now Ash was sure she would have choked on it. She really wasn’t expecting Jay to ask her that, hell she wasn’t expecting anyone to ever ask her that.

“I’m not,” Ashlyn stated simply, not really wanting to get into it.

She knew though that she could trust Jay with anything she told him knowing the only person he might even tell would be Tasha. It would also be strange her talking to a teenager about her love life. Her Ashlyn, the adult, only had a teenager to talk about this with. She could talk to Sam but she wasn’t that close to him and all her other close friends knew Ali and didn’t know they were even friends.

“Why not!” Jay protested, “You couldn’t keep your eyes off her when we played soccer last week! You let more goals in from her that day than I’ve ever seen you do,”

“Maybe that’s because she used to play soccer in college,” Ashlyn retorted.

“Bullshit! And you know it,” Jay cursed back.

Ashlyn felt her eyes widen in surprise, she knew that teenager cursed and she knew that Jay did because she has heard him before when he couldn’t get a trick quite right on his skateboard of BMX or when he was just annoyed but the way he said it shocked her greatly.

Jay could see the shock on her face and decided to try and explain himself, “Look Ash, I know I’m just a teenager and know nothing about love or whatever but I’ve known you for almost two and a half years now and I’m not just a little kid anymore! In just one afternoon I saw how you looked at her and there is some kind of weird chemistry between you that I can’t really explain but It’s there. You may not know it yet but I think she likes you too,” He stopped for a breath.

“You just have to go for it! You don’t have the excuse of you being a firefighter and having odd shifts and not wanting to subject that to anyone because she understands! You can’t be practically married to your job your whole life, it isn’t fair to you,” He added.

“Who said anything about love!” Ashlyn choked out.

Jay sighed as he moved to sit up and place a hand on Ashlyn’s shoulder, “Nobody needed to say anything Ash, your eyes tell the story before you can even put it into words,” He said simply before getting up and going back to his BMX, “Now you just have to realize this,”

Ashlyn sat there in shock as she watched Jay pedal to the top of a ramp and attempt a trick. Even though she was shocked she knew that Jay was a very intelligent kid but she didn’t know he was this insightful, he was just a teenager yet he sometimes spoke like a middle aged philosopher. He was special and Ashlyn was glad she could call him a friend no matter his age.

* * *

“So I’m just letting you know that I’m going home to Florida for a week next month,” Ashlyn informed Ali as she took a sip out of her coffee, holding back a sigh at how good it tasted. It had been another long shift at work.

“Oh,” Ali exclaimed in surprise, not really expecting what Ashlyn said since they had just been discussing whether Ali should get the chocolate cake she had seen on the cafe menu or not, “Are you going for a special occasion or are you just visiting?” She wondered.

Ash smiled, “Well I’m just going for a visit but when I booked my flights last night I realized it’s going to be my birthday while I’m there so I guess I’m going for both,”

Ali’s eyes widened in shock, “It’s your birthday next month and you didn’t tell me! Ashlyn!”

“I didn’t think it was that important,” Ashlyn mumbled into her coffee, seeing now that she probably should have

“Of course it’s important, it’s your birthday!” Ali protested.

Ash held her hands up in mock surrender like she had done a few times before, it always had to hold back a chuckle when she did it because of the irony of what she was doing and Ali being a police officer just made it hilarious to her.

“Okay okay, I’m sorry,” She apologized before adding,” Can you believe I’m going to be 26, I’m getting old,” She complained with a whine but she was only teasing.

Pretending to look hurt Ali exclaimed, “I’m older than you!”

“I know!” Ashlyn drawled, “I sometime wonder how you can even keep up with me when we jog in your old age,”

Ali narrowed her eyes as she leaned over the table to slap Ashlyn’s arm, “Jerk,” But she couldn’t help but join in with the blonde’s laughter.

* * *

_You have the day off tomorrow right? AK._

Ashlyn frowned in confusion at her best friend’s text, she knew that Ali knew that she has the second Saturday of every month off as well as the last Saturday without having a risk of being called in, it was set in stone unless something drastic happened. Maybe Ali just forgot.

_Yeah. It’s the first Saturday of the month remember? I always have them off. AH_

Ashlyn was about to flick through the TV channels to find the Jaws movie she had record during the week since she was at work when her phone dinged with a reply. She couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows at how fast Ali had replied. Ash doesn’t think she has every replied this quick.

_I was just making sure. You don’t have any afternoon plans do you? AK._

Frowning once again Ashlyn resisted the urge to just phone Ali knowing it would probably catch the brunette off guard but she was curious to what she was getting at.

_No…..???? AH._

“Nutmeg,” Ashlyn called for her puppy as she waited for a reply since she could hear him pottering around in her bedroom, “Come here buddy,” It didn’t take long for the husky to come screeching around the corner to pounce on her on the sofa.

“Oof,” She laughed rubbing behind his ears, “You aren’t getting any lighter you know,” She smiled, smiling even wider when she heard the ding of her phone once again.

_Good. I want to take you somewhere like you took me to the center. This is also your birthday present since you’re bailing me for your actual birthday. I’ll pick you up at half four. AK._

Reading the text Ashlyn felt her eyebrows raise in surprise. She shouldn’t be though because Ali just keeps surprising her out of nowhere whether it’s her laugh or her sassiness and now it’s this. Ashlyn had no idea what they were going to be doing and she didn’t even expect her and Ali to do anything for her birthday. It made her feel happy that Ali actually though and initiated them doing something for her birthday.

“Well Nutmeg, I didn’t know she could surprise me anymore than she already has but I guess she has done,” Ashlyn stated stroking Nutmeg who was now sitting on her lap before replying to Ali before she got lost in her thoughts and forgot.

* * *

Ashlyn quickly made her way to her door as she heard the knock at almost exactly half four. Stopping momentarily to check she smelt and looked okay and presentable before opening the door.  


“Hey,” She greeted her eye’s running over Ali who was wearing some Nike shoes, jeans and a hoodie. Her eyebrows raising when she noticed the neatly wrapped present in Ali’s arms, “You do know my actual birthday is in like exactly a month don’t you?”

Ali rolled her eyes as she entered the apartment after Ashlyn moved out the way and gestured for her to come in, “I know that. But you’re going to need this for tonight and tonight is the only time we can do this before your birthday so we are celebrating your birthday tonight,” Ali stated sassily.

“Okay... does that mean I can open it now and not wait for my birthday,” Ash pretended to jump up and down like an excited child at Christmas.

“You’re so annoying,” Ali huffed shoving the present into Ashlyn’s arms, “Yes you can open it now,”

“You love it, “Ash quipped, “But seriously, thank you. You didn’t have to get me anything you know Alex,” Ashlyn thanked her best friend, the nickname once again slipping out before she could stop it but Ali hadn’t protested about her calling her that and she had about five times now.

“I-uhrm-I wanted to get you something Ash. I mean it really is nothing big but you’ve been so kind and understanding to me even since I moved back and you’ve become my best friend and mean a lot to me so it’s the least I could do really,” Ali ran a hand through her hair nervously, “Go on, open it. We have to get going soon.”

Ashlyn smiled softly in appreciation before enthusiastically ripping her present open causing Ali to laugh. Ash’s eyes widened when she saw an Orlando Pride jersey and a ticket on top of it.

“Al…,” She whispered in shock. She had told the police officer how much she wanted to actually go to a NWSL game but was always on shift when they were or she had no one to go with and didn’t really want to go on her own.

“Surprise,” Ali whispered nervously but then got more confident when she saw the large smile blossoming on the firefighter’s face, “It’s the last game of the regular season and the Spirit are playing the Pride and when I saw it advertised on patrol the other week and you mentioned it was your birthday next month and I got the idea and ordered a jersey and fast-tracked it here but we do need to get a move on if we want to get the best experience out of it,”

If it was possible Ashlyn’s grin would had gone even wider,” Thank you Al! This is awesome, I’ll just change,” Ashlyn said not bothering to move as she stripped the t-shirt she already wearing over her head and slipping the jersey on.

“Perfect fit! Are you ready to head out,” Ashlyn wondered, not noticing the coloring of Ali’s cheeks and how the brunette was just stood in the same spot staring at where she had been stood as she moved to the door,” Ali?”

“Uhrm,” Ali finally snapped out of it as she quickly unzipped her hoodie to reveal her own Washington Spirit jersey as a distraction, “Now I’m ready,” She let out a smile.

* * *

“Thank you so much Ali that was awesome!” Ashlyn thanked as they walked out of the stadium. The Pride had beat the Spirit 1-0 for the first time that season and Ashlyn was ecstatic that she got to watch it in person.

“That’s okay,” Ali tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, “I enjoyed it too, even if the Spirit lost,” She laughed.

Ashlyn couldn’t help but laugh as well. She knew that they looked a funny pair sat there cheering for different teams Ashlyn in her Pride jersey and Ali in her Spirit jersey but she wouldn’t change it for the world.

Slowing down and pulling Ali out of the crowd of people Ash whispered,” I’m serious though thank you for doing this for me. What you were saying before at my apartment about doing it for me because I’m understand and stuff and that I’m your bestfriend. It means a lot.”

She didn’t hesitate before pulling Ali into a hug, smiling into Ali’s head when the smaller girl didn’t flinch or pull away but just wrapped her arms around Ashlyn’s waist and leant her head onto the blonde’s shoulder.

“You’re welcome,” Ali turned her head, practically whispering into the crook of Ashlyn’s neck, “And just thank you for being there for me,”


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it was a longer wait than I thought.  
> I went on holiday, did some work experience and now I'm back at college!  
> But don't worry I will be back to updating regularly now.  
> Not much A team interaction this chapter but it's still really important especially the ending!

“Hey,” Ali greeted as she walked into the break room at the fire station. Usually civilians weren’t allowed in the break room, that was essentially what she was since she wasn’t in uniform, but the station usually made exceptions for family of the people who worked there.

“Hey!” A surprised Kyle shot up from where he was lying on the couch, “You don’t need Ashlyn again do you, about the case? Because she’s gone on holiday to Florida,”

Ali resisted the urge to instantly reply with a ‘I know’ because she knew that Kyle didn’t know about her and Ashlyn’s friendship and to be honest for now Ali wanted it to stay that way but she didn’t really understand why.

“No, I’m not on duty,” She made a hand gesture towards her clothes to indicate it wasn’t her police uniform that she was wearing.

Kyle nodded,” Why are you here then? He wondered,” Not that I don’t want you to be here! I’m really glad you are,” He quickly added seeing his sister’s raised eyebrow.

He really was glad that she was here. Other that time she came to visit Ashlyn about a court case she hadn’t come to see him at the fire station, she didn’t even actually see him the first time she came since she was on duty and had to get back.

Ali chuckled, “I came to see you,” she smiled, “You finish in five right? I thought we could go get coffee or something,”

“Of course we can do that!” Kyle was smiling almost ear to ear by now,” But I’m looking after Ashlyn’s dog so I have to take him and Luna on a walk before we go. That okay with you? I can do it another time but I don’t want them to be stuck in my apartment all day,”

Kyle really didn’t want Ali to back out now since he would love to spend time with her. Especially considering that she came to him first and he didn’t have to go seeking her out. It was another sign that Ali was getting back to her old self and it made Kyle undeniably happy.

“We could meet up at like six at our usual coffee shop if you like? That gives me time to walk the dogs and get ready and things,” He questioned.

“I mean, I could come with you and walk the dog and we can go to that coffee shop near the park so we can sit outside with them,” Ali said sheepishly, not really confident that Kyle would go for her idea or he may find it strange.

Kyle glanced at his phone before jumping from the sofa enthusiastically, “Great! Just give me a few minutes to change and then we’re good to go!” Not giving his sister chance to reply Kyle sped off down the hallways to the locker room almost knocking over Tobin in the process and leaving Ali on her own in the break room.

Ali stood nervously for a few seconds, biting her thumb, before deciding to sit down on the nearest chair. There was hardly anyone in the break room considering it was shift change so most were in the locker room but she really didn’t want to run into Jack. She had successfully managed to not see him the second she walked into the station which was a change from when she used to come around all the time. He used to linger like he was waiting for her even though he had no idea she was coming.

It had been a strange almost week for Ali. Ever since Ashlyn left to go home to Florida for the week she had been in some kind of limbo. She had been hanging around with HAO and Pinoe more, which she should probably start doing anyway, but it was different to when she spent time with Ashlyn. With Ash she wasn’t afraid for the firefighter to see through her facade because she knew that the woman could and now that didn’t bother her anymore.

If she was being honest with herself, she wanted Ashlyn to see through her facade and break down her walls. She didn’t know why she felt like this with Ashlyn and not with someone like HAO who she had known longer or even her brother but she did.

“You ready to go Al?” Ali looked up to find Kyle stood in front of her a giant smile on his face and a duffel bag on his shoulder.

“Yeah, let’s go!”

* * *

 

“You ready?” Kyle asked as he came out of his apartment dog leads in both of his hands. Nutmeg instantly jumping up at Ali’s legs.

“Yeah, hey Nutmeg,” She cooed stroking the puppy’s head, “I can take him if you want,” Ali didn’t wait for a reply before he was taking the lead out of Kyle’s hand.

Kyle frowned in confusion, “Go head. How do you know his name?”

Ali could feel her eye’s grow about ten sizes as they widened, luckily she was still looking down at Nutmeg so Kyle didn’t notice, “Oh urm,” She got flustered for a few seconds before she realized what explanation she would give.

“I met this cutie at the park when I was filling out Ashlyn’s statement and I mean, look at him, how could I forget this face,”

Holding her breath Ali could only hope that Kyle would buy her excuse, it wasn’t exactly a lie, she could have never of forgotten Nutmeg he was a very impressionable puppy just like his owner. But she had also seen him quite a few more times after that so it was hard to forget him.

She could easily just tell Kyle that her and Ashlyn had struck up a friendship because of the case, he didn’t need to know the exact details, but she didn’t want to. One of the reasons was because she hadn’t checked with Ashlyn whether it was okay to tell him, they had an unspoken agreement to not, as well as she just didn’t want to right now.

“That was ages ago, no wonder you because a cop Al, you got the memory for it,” Kyle laughed as he guided them out of the apartment building and in the direction of the park.

“I’ll stay with the dogs while you get the coffee,” Ali said, well more like demanded, as she took Luna’s lead for Kyle’s hand, they had been walking the dogs around the park chatting absentmindedly for about an hour before they decided to get a coffee.

Kyle rolled his eyes in pretend annoyance but the smile never left his face before walking into the coffee shop. Sitting down with a huff Ali looked at the two dogs in front of her, Luna had instantly lied down at the foot of the table whilst Nutmeg was sat staring up at her.

Quickly taking a glance at Kyle through the window of the coffee shop and seeing there was actually quite a long line and that Kyle was talking to a man who was stood slightly in front of him and not paying attention to what was happening outside the shop, Ali decided to go along with the idea that had just popped into her head whilst her brother was otherwise occupied.

“Come here Nutmeg,” Ali cheesed patting her lap to try and get the puppy’s attention, which she did.

Nutmeg cocked his head to the side as if to make sure it was okay before jumping up onto Ali’s lap with her help. He was heavy since he wasn’t exactly a small puppy but Ali didn’t mind. Taking another quick glance inside to see if Kyle still wasn’t looking Ali took her phone out of her pocked before she held it out in front of her.

“Smile for your mama Nutmeg,” Ali laughed at how ridiculous she sounded telling a dog to smile for the camera and that is how she took the picture, her laughing and Nutmeg looking at her with his tongue hanging out of his mouth.

“Good boy,” She patted his head as he jumped down of her lap and decided to curl up on her feet. Ali pulled up a text message as she sat there wondering what to write. It took her a few minutes and a glance back at Kyle to see him heading towards the door with their drinks for her impulsively send what she had decided to write.

_We miss you ;) AK._

* * *

 

 Ashlyn felt her phone buzz in her pocket as she was setting the table for their big family dinner for her birthday, even though it was actually tomorrow Chris couldn’t get the shift of work so they were having it today, putting the last plate down she moved out of the way of her Grandma who was still bustling around and she moved into the living room to sit next to Chris on the sofa.

“Thanks for all you help Christopher,” She teased as she pulled out her phone to check why it had buzzed, it could just be a twitter or Instagram notification, she had met up with some old friends earlier that day and though it could have been one of them.

Opening the text Ashlyn thought that her jaw literally dropped, it probably wasn’t too far from the truth since Chris was staring at her like she had two heads.

“What’s up with you?” He questioned curiously after seeing his sister go from having a sly smirk to her jaw almost hitting the floor.

“Oh nothing, just urm a funny text from a friend,” Ashlyn tried to lie.

Chris wasn’t having any of it though, ”Oh yeah, what’s it say? It can’t be that funny if you’re not laughing,” He tried to catch her out which he did when Ashlyn didn’t reply straight away.

Moving across the sofa so he was now sitting next to his sister he snatched the phone out of her hand before getting up quickly and moving behind the sofa with it.

“Wait no Chris!” Ashlyn tried to protect, attempting to leg her brother up.

Chris didn’t listen he just stared at the phone in front of him, “Who is that,” He said, his grin now becoming teasing.

“Just a friend,” Ashlyn hissed grasping her phone back before throwing herself back down on the sofa, looking at the picture of Ali and Nutmeg once more.

She honestly wasn’t expecting it. She knew that Ali could possibly see Nutmeg when she was away since she had left him with Kyle but she hadn’t told the brunette that. The picture was a complete surprise and a good one at that.

 Her and Ali had been texting more than they usual would while Ash had been in Florida since they didn’t see each other every few days which had become routine to them but she wasn’t expecting the photo from Ali-and the caption! It was very forward and confidant for the police officer and Ashlyn would be lying if she said she wasn’t loving this side of her.

“If she was just a friend then why did you lie?” Chris wondered as he returned to his seat.

“She is just a friend and trust me that’s all she’d ever going to be,” Ashlyn sighed.

Sensing that his sister needed some guidance but not really knowing what to say he tried his best,” How do you know that Ash? It could all work out in the end if you believe,”

“Ali is, that’s her name by the way, a complicated.” She paused trying to gather her thoughts, “She’s a police officer and is very good at her job but she also has so many walls that it’s hard to get through to her,” Ash sighed once again.

“What do you mean?”

“Something happened to her not so long ago, I don’t know what before you ask me, and it changed her. I work with her brother, Kyle, I’ve told you about him before and he used to go on about her all the time and the person she was but now she seems to be the shell of that person,” Ashlyn struggled to put into word what she was thinking.

“Don’t get me wrong shes still such a great person and now her personality keeps shinning through and it makes me love her even more!” Ashlyn paused and her eyes widened to an almost impossible size as she realized what she just said, “Oh shit,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter and the one after (It's split into two) is THE chapter were y'all find out what happens if all goes to plan.
> 
> I'm nervous.
> 
> Tell me what you think!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so just like to point out that this story is obviously completely fictional! None of it is true.
> 
> Sorry if this isn't what you guy's were expecting.
> 
> WARNINGS for this chapter and especially the next one!
> 
> Tell me what you think.

Chris knocked on Ashlyn’s door after dinner that night, not bothering to wait for a response before he let himself in finding his sister laid on her bed with headphones in staring at the ceiling. Walking over noticing that Ashlyn hadn’t heard him knock or come into the room Chris smiled before jumping onto the bed next to her, pulling her headphones out in the process.

“What the fuck, Chris?” Ashlyn complained as the rubbed her ear where the headphones had caught when they were yanked.

“Stop being a baby,” Chris rolled his eyes,” I want to finish out conversation from before dinner,” After Ashlyn had unconsciously admitted that she was in love with the girl, Ali, Chris had been about to reply but Grandma had interrupted telling them dinner was ready.

Ashlyn sighed, “I don’t want to talk about it, you should just forget what I said,”

“I don’t care if you don’t want to talk about it, it seems like you need to talk about it,” Chris stated, leaning back against his sister’s head bored patting the spot next to him for her to go and join him.

“There isn’t anything to talk about,” Ashlyn resisted.

“Ash,” Chris sighed, “You just admitted that you love her,”

“That doesn’t matter,” Ashlyn muttered sadly.

Chris’ eyes widened, “Of course it matters! Why wouldn’t it!” He burst out angrily.

“I don’t think you understand. The only thing I have to offer Ali is friendship and that’s all,” She rubbed at her eyes in frustration, not understanding why Chris didn’t seem to get what she was saying.

Chris sighed once more as he leaned his head against his sister’s head bored, closing his eyes momentarily. Ashlyn obviously loved this girl and he really didn’t understand why she wasn’t even willing to tell her how she felt. This was a big deal for Ash to actually admit she was in love with someone. Almost always her main focus has been her job and now that wasn’t what she was mainly focused on and it made Chris happy because it meant that his sister actually had someone. Suddenly an idea popped into his head.

“So, you didn’t mean it then?” He questioned purposely.

Ashlyn shot of the bed angrily, her eye’s burning holes in Chris’ head, “Of course I meant it!” She practically shouted before realizing that Grandma was in bed.

“I meant it Christopher, more than you could even imagine,” She added quietly, running a hand through her hair as she turned away from her brother, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath before turning back around to find Chris sat on the end of her bed looking at her sympathetically.

Patting the place next to him once more Chris threw his arm around Ashlyn’s shoulder when she sat next to him, waiting a few more minutes for his sister to fully calm down before he spoke, “I know you mean it. I was just saying that to get you to talk about it because you do Ash. You obviously need to talk about it.

“I’m in love with her,” Ashlyn admitted fully for the first time out loud, “And if I’m being honest with myself I have been for a while now even though we actually haven’t known each other that long,”

“It doesn’t matter how long you have known each other, that doesn’t stop the feelings from developing and you know that,” Chris lectured knowing his sister well before adding,” Now why don’t you just tell her, you don’t know what will happen,”

Ash lent against her brother with a sad sigh,” She isn’t ready, I don’t know why but all I know is that she isn’t ready and I’m okay with that,” She laughed a little, “Plus she is very very straight,”

“How do you know that?” Chris wondered softly, not really sure how he should approach the topic anymore.

Ashlyn got up again to start pacing, feeling almost trapped in her brother’s arms at the pressure of all the questions he was firing at her. It wasn’t that she didn’t know what to say, she knew exactly what she wanted to say but even though he was her brother she didn’t want to discuss Ali too much, wanting to keep whatever they have between the two of them for the moment, but she also knew that she couldn’t keep it bottled up any longer.

“I just know. It’s in the way she acts she’s very withdrawn,” Ash told him.

Chris sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that night, “Do you remember my friend Josh from high school?” He questioned causing Ash to turn and look at him weirdly, wondering why he was bringing him up now.

“Yeah…,” She offered curiously.

“Well he was a ladies’ man in high school you know this and now guess what, he’s married to a man and they have adopted a little boy,” Chris informed her.

Ashlyn’s eyes widened in shock, she wasn’t expecting that at all, she remembers Josh from when he used to hang about the house with Chris and how she had overheard them talking about their escapades with girls many times,” What really?”

Nodding in confirmation Chris stood up from the bed to rest a hand on his sister’s shoulder, squeezing it softly, “All I’m trying to say is that things change, it’s always good to expect the unexpected,” He removed his hand and walked towards the door, “You should tell her Ash, you never know what may happen,”

Watching her brother’s retreating back Ashlyn sat back down on her bed before resting her head in her hand with a sigh, she knew that she probably could tell Ali how she felt about her but she didn’t want to ruin what they already had by over stepping. She also knew somehow that the brunette wasn’t ready but she didn’t exactly know why she felt that.

Laying back down on her bed Ashlyn gripped her phone to once again look at the photo Ali had sent her earlier that day of her and Nutmeg, ever since the police officer had sent it to her she hadn’t be able to resist glancing at it multiple times.

* * *

 

 

 Ali tapped her fingers on the bar as she looked restlessly at her third beer of the night. She knew exactly why she was feeling like this; it was coming up to the exact day that it started and she didn’t know how to feel about it. She didn’t want to be alone yet she didn’t want to go to Kyle or her parents. She wanted Ashlyn.

Downing the rest of her beer she lifted her arm up to try and get Sam’s attention, who was further down the bar, seemingly chatting up a pretty redheaded woman. He looked over at her, furrowing his eyebrows before saying something to the women, kissing her on the cheek and making his way over to Ali.

“Ali…,” He stated softly as he came to stand in front of her, leaning on the bar.

Ali ignored him, her eyes still trained on the redhead who was now gathering her things to leave, “Is that your girlfriend?” She wondered, she had heard both Ashlyn and Sam mention his girlfriend before but she had never met or seen the girl, which was surprising considering the amount of time her and Ashlyn actually spend at the bar.

“Yeah, that’s Lucy,” Sam responded with a slight smile as he watched his girlfriend walk out of the bar, winking at her when she turned round to wave at him.

“She’s really beautiful, she’s lucky to have you,” Ali answered sincerely, she liked Sam. He was a hardworking man who worked most nights in his bar since he struggled to keep staff and wants to make sure everything is okay himself.

Sam smiled at her once more before frowning at her beer, “You don’t want another one Ali,” He said slowly. He felt like he was being a bit condescending but he liked to think he had gotten to know Ali through Ashlyn these past couple of months and knows that she will regret having this next beer when she was so obviously down.

Sighing once more Ali admitted, “I know,” She rung her hands together, “Thank you, for not giving me one, I guess I’m having a hard day,” She was surprised how much she was opening up to Sam right now but she figured it was because being here and talking to him reminded her of being there with Ashlyn, who for some reason she couldn’t get out of her head.

“Maybe you should call her,” He offered hesitantly, not really sure what Ali’s reaction would be. He knew that they were close but he didn’t know how close but he did know that Ali looked like she was struggling tonight and he knew that Ashlyn could help.

“I-I,” Ali stuttered, “I think I will,”

* * *

 

Ali wrapped her coat around her tighter as she walked out of the door, slipping her phone out of her pocket, not even stopping to hesitate before she was dialing Ashlyn’s number, anxiously listing to the dialing tone.

 “Ali, hey!” Ashlyn’s excited tone filtered through the phone after a few tense second of Ali walking down the street waiting for her to answer, she was actually surprised how fast the blonde had answered the phone.

“Hey, uhrm you’re not busy are you?” Ali muttered, regretting calling the firefighter.

“No!” Ashlyn practically shouted, Ali heard some shuffling and the background noise she had previously heard faded away, “I was just watching some TV with my Grandma but I can talk,”

Ali suddenly felt guilty for not thinking about what the blonde could be doing, it was her birthday after all,” Oh, Ash! I didn’t mean to interrupt your time with your Grandma, I know you miss her a lot and are leaving tomorrow,” She rambled on.

Ashlyn laughed to herself, “Calm down, Grandma is too busy watching TV to even know that I’ve left the room,” She stated, “I’m glad you called,” The blonde added softly.

The firefighter hadn’t been expecting Ali to call, after all they had exchanged a few texts this morning when Ali had text her a happy birthday before she went into work. Seeing Ali’s name and a picture of the two of them at the Orlando VS Washington game, frowning at each other with their respected jerseys on, had made Ashlyn smile so largely that she’d answered the call before she had even left her Grandma’s sitting room.

Smiling to herself Ali decided not to answer Ash’s last statement, not because she didn’t want to but because she was scared about what she would say, “So how has your birthday been so far,”

“It’s been amazing! I love being home, seeing my Grandma and Chris. We’ve been spending most of our time together and we had a family meal last night which was for my birthday because Chris is working right now. Me and Grandma hung out today and I met up with some old friend this afternoon, the only thing that would have made it better would have been surfing but it’s too cold,” Ashlyn got out in one breath.

“Wow, sounds like you have been having fun,” Ali giggled before adding seriously, “Do you regret moving to DC?”

“What?” Ashlyn spluttered, “Where did that come from?”

Ali ran a hand through her hair as she waited for the lights to turn red so she could cross the road, she wasn’t sure why she had blurted that out and she had no answer for Ashlyn, “I don’t know,”

“Are you Okay, Ali?” Ashlyn questioned frowning to herself.

 The blonde had known that something was wrong with Ali as soon as she had called, especially considering that it was almost midnight and as much as Ali tried to sound happy Ashlyn could tell she wasn’t. She didn’t really want to bring it up because she didn’t want to upset Ali even further when she was there to comfort her but she knew she had to as the conversation continued.

“I-No,” Ali didn’t feel the need to lie she could tell that Ashlyn would know that she was.

There was silence for a few minutes as neither women spoke, both just listening to the other one breath and somehow it was a comfort to both of them.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Ashlyn finally breathed.

Ali shook her head before realising that Ashlyn couldn’t see her, “No,”

Ashlyn sighed, she knew that would be the answer and she hated knowing that Ali was hurting, “I don’t regret moving to DC,” She spoke, “It was the best thing for me to do for not only my career but also my personal life, I know it seems like I don’t have many friend but I do and I’m grateful for it,” She paused.

“I don’t regret moving to DC because If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have met you,”

* * *

 

Waking up the next night with as gasp as uncontrollable sobs wracked her body, Ali rolled over in bed, clutching her pillow close to her chest as she attempted to control her breathing the best she could. Her hands turning white as she clenched the pillow between her fists.

Taking deep breaths but being unable to stop the sobs Ali got out of bed and made her way to her front door, not bothering to put on clothes or shoes only grabbing her keys before she was out the door and practically running down the streets.

* * *

 

Ashlyn groaned as she heard a constant banging on her door, turning over to look at her phone she sighed when she saw it was 3am, she was glad she had only arrived back from the airport late and had arranged with Kyle to pick Nutmeg up tomorrow instead of as soon as she got off her flight.

Getting out of bed and grasping some workout shorts she had left on the floor to put over her boxers, rubbing her bare arms as the tank top she was wearing didn’t cover them as she made her way to her door, wondering how would be knocking on her door this loudly at 3am.

She didn’t even bother to look through the peep hole before she opened the door, knowing that she probably should have but she would have been just as shocked either way. She swung the door open quickly to find Ali stood there bare footed in just small shorts and a t-shirt, keys clutched in one hand, the other poised to knock again as tears poured down her face steadily.

“Alex!” Ashlyn exclaimed her eye’s widening in shock, Ali just started at her for a few seconds before launching herself into Ashlyn’s arms her tears starting to fall fasted as they dampened the blonde’s tank top.

Ashlyn stumbled back a few steps at the force Ali ran into her at but that didn’t stop her from quickly swinging the door shut behind the brunette and wrapping her arms around her and Ali’s hand’s grasped at the back of her tank top desperately.

They stood there for around ten minutes Ashlyn gently shushing the older girl as she waited for her sobs to slow down, it took a while but Ali finally pulled back to look up at Ashlyn. She had no makeup on and he eyes were red and swollen but to Ashlyn she was still the most beautiful girl she had ever seen.

“I’m sorry for just turning up like this,” Ali murmured looking down, her voice raspy from the crying.

“I don’t care,” Ashlyn responded, using her hand to lift Ali’s face so they were looking at each other, “I’m glad you came,”

“Now come on, let’s get you some warm clothes and a coffee,” Ashlyn smiled, hugging Ali to her chest for a second before she let go and headed to her bedroom, grabbing Ali one of the FD jumpers and a pair of joggers before giving them to the brunette, telling her to sit down whist she made them some coffee.

Ashlyn’s mind was racing whilst she made them both a cup of coffee, she had never seen the brunette look so lost and broken and she didn’t like it.

Walking back into the sitting room she gave Ali her cup before sitting next to the police officer who was now dressed in the clothes she had gave her watching as she took a few sips of coffee before placing it on the coffee table, Ashlyn doing the same.

“I want to tell you,” Ali admitted, her eye’s already welling up with tears, “I-just,”

“Take all the time you need Alex,” Ashlyn interrupted the struggling women, placing a cautious arm around her shoulder, surprised when Ali leaned into her.

They sat like that for a good twenty minutes, Ali drawing strength and comfort for the blonde and Ashlyn trying not to break herself at the state Ali was in.

“His name was Kurt,” Ali started off, burrowing into Ashlyn more,” He was my second partner in Germany after mine first one got promoted. He was so caring and funny and I guess things just kind of developed naturally and we started dating, this time last year actually.

Ashlyn tried to stop herself form tensing as things started to add up in her head, she knew that this was more than they had broken up and Ali was heartbroken.

“I thought I was in love with him, I thought he was in love with me,” Ali let out a little sob, stopping to regain her composure, “When I got back from visiting here for Christmas, things started to change, he got possessive and angry, he didn’t want me to go out with my friends, he didn’t want me to talk to any of the other officers at work or my family,”

“And I didn’t,” Ali cried,” Because he would hit me if I did and I let him do that to me,” This time Ashlyn couldn’t stop herself from tensing, pulling the crying girl closer to her.

“I was so weak,” She sobbed, “I just let him hurt me,”

“What!” Ashlyn couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Ali nodded into the blonde’s shoulder, “I’m a police officer Ashlyn, I’ve dealt with cases like this, I knew I should have told someone but I didn’t. I felt trapped, stuck looking at my life through a mirror, unable to do anything, because I was so fucking helpless and I couldn’t stop it!”

Ashlyn turned Ali in her arms so the brunette was practically sitting in her lap as she cupped both of her cheeks with her hands, forcing the police officer to meet her eyes, tears in both of theirs, “You are not weak,” She spoke each word slowly.

“You are one of the strongest people I know and look Alex, look at you now, look what you have still become, you didn’t let him hurt you Ali, you had no control over what he did,”Ali just sobbed once more as she lent forward resting her head on Ash’s chest for comfort.

Wrapping her arms around the brunette Ashlyn pulled her fully onto her lap, not caring how it looked, “What aren’t you telling me Alex,” She whispered into her ear, knowing that Ali was leaving something out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this is disappointing some people.   
> Next chapter is a continue from this.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this chapter isn't that long but it was incredibly hard to write and I didn't want to add anything else to it.
> 
> Once again this is not real, the characters are not real they are fictional.
> 
> WARNING
> 
> Trigger warning for this chapter once again, don't read if you are sensitive to abuse and other sensitive issues.

Ashlyn felt Ali’s hand’s gripping her tank top even tighter as she curled herself into a tight ball in her lap, her knees digging painfully into Ash’s ribs but in this moment in time she really couldn’t care less, the only thing that mattered was the shaking brunette in her arms.

“Whenever you’re ready Alex,” Ashlyn announced, resting her head on top of Ali’s as she stoked her arms over her thick FD jumper that Ali was currently wearing, “You don’t need to tell me anything more, if you don’t want to but know I’m hear if you do,”

There were a few moments of silence as Ali continued to shake with now quite sobs, Ashlyn didn’t know what to do. Her head was already reeling at what Ali had told her and by the way the police officer is now she knows that there is only more to come and it isn’t going to be pretty.

“I want to, I want to tell you, I need to tell you,” Ali admitted quietly, leaning her head backwards to look up at the firefighters face who was staring down at her with an unreadable but comforting face, “I let him do that to me,” She started.

“Alex…,” Ashlyn tried to protest, not liking the way Ali was talking about herself.

“No,” Ali croaked, “I let him, because I was scared. I tried to push away at first, I tried to fight back but he would hit me harder in places people could see and I couldn’t keep making up excuses I felt so ashamed so I just let him do it.”

Ashlyn furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, things adding up in her head she really didn’t want to be true but knew it was a possibility, a big one. A lump formed in her throat whilst tears in her eyes as everything clicked.

She looked Ali in the eye’s and saw even more pain than there was before and that’s when she knew for sure, the haunted look in the brunette’s eyes is something she would never forget, the way her lips quivered as she tried to hold back sobs once more, only letting a few stray tears out as she fought to stay strong, as she fought to keep her emotions in.

“Alex… we’re not talking about him just hitting you anymore are we?” Ash began, her voice dying in her throat as Ali shook her head in confirmation.

Biting her lip as she involuntarily let a tear slip out of her eye Ashlyn shifted on the sofa, moving so Ali was not straddling her lap rather than sitting across it. Leaning forward to take Ali’s face into her hands her thumbs stroking away the tears once more that had started falling faster once Ali had realized Ashlyn knew for sure. The blonde was about to start talking but the look in Ali’s eyes let her know that she wasn’t done telling her story yet.

Taking a deep breath to try and calm her tears and gather her courage Ali began to tell Ashlyn what only the people who knew the details of the trial knew, “The abuse started first. It wasn’t that bad at first, he used to just slap me around a few times but then it did get worse. I remember exactly what happened that night,” Ali shivered causing Ashlyn to pull her closer in her arms but not before checking that she was okay.

“He came to my apartment one night after we had just finished a long and hard shift, a teenage had been stabbed because he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and me and Kurt were the ones who had to tell the boy’s parents, his name was Henry. It’s always hard telling family that their child or family member has been killed or died in an accident but it’s always worse when it’s children,” Ali paused once again as she prepared herself for what she was about to say, what she was about to mentally relive like she did most nights in her nightmares.

“After shift all I wanted to do was go home and go to bed, to forget the day ever happened but that’s not what Kurt had in mind. This was at a time where his possessiveness was starting to get really bad, it was even happening at work around witnesses, he would grab my arm and always trying to touch me in some way but not in a loving way like most relationships, the bosses at work knew about us and were fine with it as long as we kept it professional, “Ali had been looking into Ashlyn’s eyes the entire time she had been telling the story so far.

“I told him to go back to his apartment after shift, to get some sleep, it had been a long hard shift for both of us and that we could both use some time on our own but he didn’t like that. He grabbed my arm in the parking lot of the station, hard enough to leave a faint mark but light enough for people passing to thing he was just holding my arm. He told me with a smile on his face that he just want’s spend some time with me after a long day but his eyes were hard and I couldn’t read them and it scared me enough that I didn’t say no when I should have,”

Tears began to fall rapidly out of her eyes as she knew exactly what was coming next, she grabbed Ashlyn’s hands that were still on her face and squeezed them tightly as if drawing strength from her before lowering them to her thighs.

“Everything was okay until we got in bed that night, we had a nice small dinner and watched some TV before I decided to go to bed early because I was tired. I was nearly asleep when he came in about half an hour later. I pretended I was asleep not really wanting to talk to him when he came behind me and started feeling me up. I told him that I didn’t want to do that tonight, that I was tired but he didn’t listen he just continued and started to get on top of me,”

“That’s when I started to push him off,” Ali cried, “I-it was the wrong thing to do because it just made him even more angry, he kept asking me why didn’t I love him anymore and I told him I did but I was tired and so was he but he was tired of me pushing him away. He was fully on top of me when he grabbed my arm and held them above my head he slapped me a few times before grabbing my neck to hold me down and I couldn’t do anything! I just had to lie there.

Ali was full on sobbing as she remembered what happened that night, every single detail rushing back to her as if it was happening right now, she placed her head onto Ashlyn’s chest and wrapped her arms around her neck and it comforted her. It made her feel safe like nothing bad could happen to her as long as Ashlyn was around.

“I had to stay off work for a few days until the bruising on my face and neck went down and Kurt went along with pretending that I had the flu, whenever someone asked about the bruising on my face since my neck could be covered up with my uniform I just said I feel over whilst feeling dizzy when I had the flu and after that I didn’t try to fight back, I was ashamed that I let him do that to me and I was scared of people keep asking questions and finding out. But I was more scared of breaking up with him because I didn’t know what he would do,”

Ashlyn sat up straightened on the couch as she turned to look at Ali who was watching her from where she was burrowed into her chest, “You didn’t let him do anything to you Alex,” She stroked her cheek soothingly, “He gave you no choice and you are so strong and beautiful, don’t ever forget that! It wasn’t your fault,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was that okay guys? Disappointing?


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a bit of the aftermath of their conversation! and a tiny step forward with their relationship(Tiny tiny tiny)  
> Next chapter will be longer, sorry for the wait I'm writing like five different fan fictions at the same time.

Ali woke up the next morning with her back aching and her head resting on a chest. She instantly knew who it was so she didn’t freak out, the unmistakable sent of Ashlyn being a familiar one. They must have fallen asleep after Ali had reviled most of her past to Ashlyn.

She lied there listening to Ashlyn’s heart beat and taking comfort from the strong arms wrapped around her. She didn’t care that the position they were in, Ali being fully on top of Ash, was uncomfortable on the blonde’s sofa, she felt content and safe which is something she hadn’t experienced in a while.

To be honest, she couldn’t believe that she had told Ashlyn about what happened to her put it felt like a weight had been lifted of her shoulders, she knew that she could have told Kyle, Heather or Pinoe having trusting them all and probably will tell them eventually but for some reason she felt a special connection to Ashlyn and that just made it easier to tell her. There must have been a reason that she had gone to the blonde, even if subconsciously.

Lifting her head up from Ashlyn’s chest slightly, her hand placed just above the fire fighters heart Ali looked into her peacefully sleeping face. Ali had to admit that the younger girl was stunningly beautiful, not that she hadn’t noticed before but now being able to look at her without Ashlyn noticing just reinforced that.

“I can feel you staring at me,” Ashlyn mumbled, her eyes still closed.

Eyes widening, Ali burrowed her face down into Ashlyn’s chest in embarrassment, feeling is rumble with a chuckle, “Sorry,” She apologized sheepishly.

“Don’t worry about it, I know I’m gorgeous,” Ashlyn joked, now opening her eyes to look at the top of Ali’s head, their eyes meeting when Ali turned to look at her with a shy smile, “How are you feeling?”

Ali thought for a minuet about what her reply would be before settling on, “Honestly, I feel relieved. Thank you for listing to me,”

“Hey,” Ashlyn reached across to place her hand on top of Ali’s that was still resting above her heart, “I’ll always listen to what you say,” She admitted with a smile.

The two sat there staring at each other both with shy smiles on their faces before Ashlyn snapped out of it.

“You fell asleep on my knee last night and I didn’t want to risk waking you, you obviously needed it so I just kinda stretched out and left you there, I hope that’s okay,” Ashlyn asked nervously, she had been conflicted about what to do once she had realized that Ali had fallen asleep in her arms, she knew that if she took Ali into her room she would have probably woke up and she didn’t want that to happen.

“It’s fine,” Ali smiled as she got off Ashlyn to stretch her back out with a groan.

Ashlyn laughed, “I know. The sofa is not very comfy but at least you had me to take the brunt of it,”

Ali rolled her eyes, internally glad that Ashlyn wasn’t treating her any different after what she had told her, it had been one of her worries about telling people, she didn’t want to be treated any differently, even if it the events had changed her she liked to think she was beginning to be her old self again and she had Ashlyn to partly thank for that.

Taking another step away from the sofa Ali winced at the sudden pain that shot through both of her feet, “Ouch,” She muttered, staggering back slightly, almost falling on Ashlyn’s legs who was still lied horizontal on the sofa.

“Are you okay?” Ashlyn shot up from the sofa, grasping at Ali’s shoulder to steady her and stop her from falling before slowly guiding her down onto the sofa.

“I don’t think it was a good idea to jog a couple of blocks bare footed last night,” Ali winced, leaning back on the sofa, making sure her feet were not touching the floor but not wanting to look at the damage she had done to them.

Ashlyn sat down on her coffee table, pushing a few magazines’ away, hesitating slightly before she lent down and grasped both of Ali’s ankles gently, lifting her legs up so her heels could rest against her knees, giving her a better look at the brunette’s feet.

She looked at them for a few seconds frowning, “Looks like you’ve got some gravel and I think a few pieces of glass stuck in your feet,” Ashlyn murmured, placing Ali’s feet back down, making sure they didn’t touch the floor once again before hoping up and heading into her kitchen to get the first aid kit which was on top of her fridge, then going back to sitting on her coffee table, placing the first aid kit next to her and putting Ali’s feet back onto her legs.

As she started fiddling through the first aid kit to find the antiseptic wipes and tweezers Ashlyn could feel Ali’s eyes almost staring a hole in the top of her head and it was all she could do to resist the temptation to look up until she had found what she needed.

“This may sting a little,” Ash warned as she grasped Ali’s left foot in her hand, waiting for Ali to give any indication that she was good to continue. After seeing Ali’s nod she brought the tweezers up to try and take a small piece of glass that had embedded itself in the pad of the police officers foot.

“So,” Ashlyn started about a minute later, trying to distract Ali after seeing her wince a few times, “How did you only just realize when you stood up, I can understand why you didn’t last night but what about when you woke up?” She wondered.

Ali flushed a bright pink, glad that Ashlyn wasn’t looking at her but was focusing on trying to get a tricky piece of gravel out of her foot before wiping it with an antiseptic wipe so the cut it left wouldn’t get infected, “I guess, I was a little bit distracted,”

“You know, thinking about what I told you last night,” She added hastily.

Ashlyn paused what she was doing, placing the tweezers on the table next to her before reaching forward to rest her hand on Ali’s shin, “You know that I don’t care about what you said last night,” Ashlyn said before quickly amending what she was saying when she saw Ali frown, placing her other hand on Ali’s other shin, giving it a squeeze.

“Oh shit, no that came out not how I meant it. Obviously I care, something like that should never happen to anybody and especially not you, I just meant that it doesn’t change anything between us expect that I respect you even more now and I didn’t even know that was possible,” To say Ashlyn was nervous would be a rather big understatement, she had messed up what she was trying to say.

Ali slid forward on the sofa, Ashyn’s hands falling of her shins and she moved her feet from the blonde’s knees and placing her hands exactly where her heels had been, “I know what you’re trying to say Ash, thank you,” She replied sincerely.

Ash smiled, looking into Ali’s eyes. She could feel the connection once again and wanted to do nothing more but to act on it but she knew this wasn’t the right time and she also couldn’t determine what Ali’s reaction would have been. She knew that the police officer was straight but recently, especially this morning they had been having confusing moment.

When she had woken up, Ashlyn could feel, Ali’s gaze on her face for a good couple of minutes and then the brunette placing her hand on her chest before she had decided to let Ali know that she was awake. She had been awake for a while even though she had been woken only hours before by knocking on her door, the feeling of Ali’s body pressed against hers as she slept was something that she would have trouble not thinking about, she also had trouble keeping her heart rate smooth and regular when Ali’s hand came up to her chest.

“Would you like some breakfast?” The blonde wondered after a few minutes of them just looking at each other, small smiles on their faces, “I don’t have much in but I’m sure I have some eggs, I could make us cheese omelettes,”

Ali gave a wide smile, “That would be nice,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what y'all think!
> 
> Also, you can ask me any questions on my tumblr....
> 
> alexbkrieger11


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter! I updated a few days ago but did it early morning my time when most of y'all were sleeping so if you didn't read that... read it before this one:)
> 
> Hope you like this!   
> Tell me what you think!

“That was nice,” Ali commented, placing her knife and fork in the middle of the plate and taking a sip out of the still hot coffee Ashlyn had made her.

Ash chuckled quietly, “You sound surprised. I’ll have you know that I’m an excellent chef and if I had more food in it would have been even better,” She smiled as she stood up to collect her and Ali’s plates to take to the sink.

“What type of ‘excellent chef’ doesn’t have any food in their fridge or cupboards,” Ali teased causing Ashlyn to let out a fake mortified gasp.

“Just you wait Alex, just you wait,” Ashlyn spoke mysteriously, placing their plates in the sink for her to was later.

Sitting back down Ashlyn glanced at the time that was lit up on her oven, “I really need to go pick Nutmeg up from Kyle’s before shift, I said I would. Do you want me to take you home?”

Ali opened her mouth with a reply but didn’t get chance since Ashlyn cut her off, “I don’t even know why I asked, I’m going to give you a ride home anyway. You can borrow some of my shoe’s, they may be slightly too big but it will be better than Injuring your feet even more,”

Ashlyn once again didn’t wait for a reply before she was heading into her bedroom to put a jumper and some jogging pants on so she at least looked presentable before grasping Ali a pair of her socks and some Nike shoe and heading back to where Ali was still sat at her kitchen counter.

She tried to ignore the feeling that the image brought up, Ali sat there in her kitchen, wearing her clothes with a cup of coffee held in her hands, a small smile on her face. It made Ashlyn’s heart swell up and she only wished that this was happening under different circumstances.

“Here you go,” She held the shoes and socks out to Ali with a smile, their hands brushing when the brunettes took them out of her hands.

Seeing the patterns on the socks Ali couldn’t help but let out a loud laugh, “Sharks, really?”

“Shit. I wasn’t supposed to give you them,” Ashlyn breathed, trying to leap forward and take the socks off Ali so she could give her a different pair.

Ali had different ideas as she hopped, gently so she didn’t hurt her feet, off the stool and moved the socks behind her back so Ashlyn couldn’t take them from her, “Stop, they’re cute. I want to wear them,”

“Okay, okay!” Ashlyn held her hands up in surrender, something she did mockingly often but it still cracked her up at the fact that she was doing that to a police officer, chuckling to herself as she went to brush her teeth and freshen up, not wanting to go and pick Nutmeg up looking like a hermit.

Once she was sure Ashlyn had gone into her bathroom, Ali pulled the socks from behind her back and held them in front of her with a soft smile. It still continued to amaze her how the tough-looking, muscular firefighter was a not so secret softie as she had come to learn.

The way that she had held her the night before had been so gentle, it wasn’t uncomfortable as she expected it could have been but soft and caring. She really was a unique person and Ali was coming to realize how much she actually cared for the blonde and It scared her, it wasn’t something she had felt before and especially a girl. But at the same time it didn’t scare her.

Still staring at the socks Ali held them close to her chest, biting her lip with a smile before pulling the socks on and then the quite obviously too big Nike trainers on after them, the sleeves of Ashlyn’s Fire department jumper getting in the way slightly causing Ali to chuckle, she had only just realized the actual height difference between her and Ash.

“Are you ready?” Ashlyn wondered, walking out of her bathroom, teeth brushed, hair combed. Her gaze landing on Ali’s feet as she laughed, “Those look a bit too big,” She commented, the view of Ali in her shark socks and trainers that she would probably almost walk out of was funny and made Ali look cute, more so than usual.

“Well if somebody,” Ali stood up and poked at Ashlyn’s chest with an eye roll, “Didn’t have gigantic feet, maybe they would feet me,”

“Is it pick on Ashlyn day today?” Ash asked whilst searching the kitchen for her car keys, grinning in triumph when she found them, “Come on, let’s go,”

The two made their way down to where Ashlyn’s car was parked, both having a good laugh at the thump Ashlyn’s shoes made as Ali tried to walk while keeping them successfully on her feet.

“I forgot to ask,” Ashlyn said as she started up her car, “Do you have to work today?”

“No,” Ali sighed in relief, “I have the next few days off, you said you were working, what time till?”

“My shift ends at midnight,” Ashlyn told the brunette.

Ali frowned, she felt really guilty that she had kept the blonde up the previous night, she must have been tired form the travelling she had done the day before and her knocking on the blonde’s door in the middle of the night wouldn’t have helped at all and now she had one of the late shifts.

“Hey,” Ashlyn placed her hand on Ali’s leg once she noticed the frown on her face, “Stop thinking like that, I’ll be fine,”

“You’re not going to be too tired and get hurt are you?” Ali wondered nervously.

Ashlyn sighed, “I’ve been on shifts with less sleep than I’ve had now so stop worrying. Yes, there are always risks of me being hurt but that happens in your job. Plus, I can sleep in between calls if I don’t have too much paper work to fill out,”

The rest of the short ride to Ali’s apartment was silent, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad thing. Ashlyn pulled her car to a stop in front of Ali’s apartment building, not bothering to turn off her engine as she turned to face Ali.

“Thank you,” Ali spoke quietly.

“I was going out anyway,” Ash smiled.

Ali unbuckled her seat belt, turning to face Ashlyn in before leaning over the console towards the blonde, “No,” She breathed as she leant forward and placed a soft kiss on Ashlyn’s cheek, lingering longer than she probably should have, “Thank you for last night,” She pulled away but didn’t make a move to get out of the car or move away from Ashlyn.

“I’ve told you before that you don’t need to thank me,”

“I know, but I still want too, so you know that I mean it.” Al darted forward placing another kiss on Ashlyn’s cheek, “Thank you for the ride home,”

And that was that. She jumped out of Ashlyn’s care with a small wave and made her way up to her apartment, leaving a stunned Ashlyn to just stare after her, her hand coming to rest on her cheek which felt like it was on fire, a large smile coming on her face.

* * *

 

“Hey man,” Ashlyn greeted Kyle when he opened the door to her apartment, the man not having chance to reply before Nutmeg came barreling into Ashlyn’s legs at full speed almost knocking her over, he had obviously recognized her voice. “Hey buddy,” Ashlyn patted his head with a smile.

“How was he?” She asked Kyle as the man ushered her into his apartment.

Smiling, Kyle sassed, “He was a dream. He and Luna are now best friends and I’ve decided I’m not going to let you take him back,”

Ashlyn chuckled as she knelt down on the floor next to Nutmeg who was trying to roll onto her feet, “Looks like you made quite the impression buddy, he’s trying to dog-nap you,” She rubbed at his stomach soothingly.

“Nutmeg just seems to love us Krieger’s, Ali came around and he took to her straight away,” Kyle laughed, gathering Nutmeg’s toys and bed into a pile.

“Oh,” Ashlyn spoke, glad that Kyle was facing the other way so he couldn’t see the expression on her face.

 She knew that Ali had not told her brother about them being friends and that didn’t bother her, their friendship was actually hard to explain but she knew that they had to tell Kyle sooner or later, it felt like one of those movies where the little sister is dating somebody big brother doesn’t approve of. Even though it’s completely different since her and Ali aren’t dating and Kyle does like her.

But would he like her if they did date. Ashlyn shook her head to try and stop them thoughts, her and Ali weren’t going to date. Their relationship, however, has changed since Ali admitted why she has so many walls, what she had been through.

The walls had slowly been coming down before she told Ashlyn but ever since last night they seemed to have crumpled even more. Ali was obviously still haunted by what happened but it really did seem like a weight had been lifted of her shoulders by telling her.

The brunette could have been even more withdrawn this morning in the aftermath of their emotional conversation and her confessions but she didn’t she had opened herself even more to Ashlyn and let herself shine through the cracks in the wall.

“Yeah, they were like instantly best friends, we went out for a walk and he was like attached to her,” He continued, not noticing the tone in Ashlyn’s voice who knew exactly what he was talking about since she had the selfie Ali had sent her of her and Nutmeg saved onto her phone.

“Well, they have met each other before, when we were at the park and she took my statement, he seemed to take a shine to her then,” Ashlyn offered.

Kyle gave Ashlyn Nutmeg’s belongings as she was attaching the lead to his collar, “Yeah she said that, I guess it must be these Krieger genes,” He joked.

Ashlyn laughed, now thankful that she had decided to mention Ali meeting Nutmeg at the park, it could have been an awkward situation which she wasn’t quite sure how to handle. She knew when they decided to tell Kyle about their friendship she was going to leave it up to Ali, not because it was her brother but because of the situations surrounding their friendship, especially the start of it.

“It must be,” Ash mussed, more to herself rather than Kyle but he didn’t notice, he was too busy stroking Nutmeg goodbye.

* * *

 

Ali woke up in her bed two hours after Ashlyn had dropped her off at her apartment, she was still on top of the covers, fully clothed with Ashlyn’s over sized shoes and clothes. Sitting up she slid the shoes off her feet with a smile, placing them gently on the floor at the side of her bed before she lent against her headboard with a small smile, snuggling into Ashlyn’s jumper.

Before she could talk herself out of it she was reaching over the grasp her phone which she had left charging on the nightstand the night before and was dialing Ashlyn’s number. She knew that she should have been more careful the night before, she was a police officer she should know that going out in the middle of the night with no phone and shoes was stupid, she realized how out of it she must have actual been.

“Hello?” The voice that she had come to associate with comfort broke her from her train of thought, Ash has answered her phone.

“Hey,” Ali mumbled, now regretting her impulsive decision to phone the blonde when they had just been together two hours ago, “You’re not at work yet are you?”

“No, I have an hour or so yet. Why? Are you Okay?” Ashlyn’s voiced crackled through the phone.

Ali winced at the panic in Ashlyn’s voice, “I’m fine, I’m sorry for ringing you, it doesn’t matter,”

She was about to put the phone down before Ashlyn stooped her, “Hey wait it’s fine. Is there something you wanted to talk about?”

“I-I was wondering if you were working tomorrow?” Ali asked nervously.

“I’m not. I have the day off since I took a late shift today,” Ashlyn answered, shushing Nutmeg when Ali heard him start barking, “He can hear your voice you know that why he’s barking,”

Chuckling, Ali finally started to relax before she remembered what the whole point of this conversation actually was, “So uhrm, since you aren’t working I was wondering if I could take you out to dinner,”

“You know as a thank you for listening to me last night and an apology for waking you up in the early hours of the morning,” She added hastily when there was a pause on the other side of the phone,”

Ashlyn cleared her throat, a wide smile on her face even though Ali couldn’t see that, “I would love to go out to dinner with you, do you want me to pick you up?”

“No!” Ali almost shouted, eyes wide, “I’ll pick you up… at seven… is that okay?” She cautiously asked.

The blonde couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle at the frantic yet nervous tone the Ali was sporting, “That’s fine with me, you know where I live,” She joked, trying to ease the nervous tension she could feel coming from Ali even through the phone.

“Great! I’ll see you then!” Ali hung up the phone not giving Ash a chance to reply as she fell back onto her bed with a groan.

Ashlyn pulled the phone way from her ear and looked at it with a raised eyebrow once she had head the call disconnect as she turned to look at Nutmeg who was now curled up on her lap.

“Looks like I’m going to dinner tomorrow,” She grinned excitedly at her dog but tried not to get too excited since it wasn’t exactly a date, but she couldn’t stop the wide smile on her face at the fact that Ali had asked her to dinner.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How good am I? Three chapters in less than a week... unheard of :P
> 
> People have been asking about how and when will Kyle find out about their friendship....that's not the question you should be asking.   
> You should be asking does he find out when they are friends.... or more...  
> Tell me what you think!

Ali looked at herself through the mirror as she smoothed the front of her dress down, she hadn’t told Ashlyn where they were going or what to wear but she knew that the blonde had style and would know what to wear. She had opted for a simple blue dress that ended just after her knees, with just her usual amount of make-up.

 She didn’t know why she was so nervous; she had been out with the blonde before multiple times just not as fancy as this dinner would be but that didn’t change much. Taking another glance in the mirror Ali looked at the time on her phone, realizing if she didn’t leave to pick Ashlyn up soon she would be late.

Placing her phone in her bag, Ali looked around her apartment to make sure she had unplugged everything, especially her hair straighteners, it wouldn’t be good if her and Ash’s dinner had to be cut short because she had set her apartment accidentally on fire.

“Okay, I can do this,” Ali muttered to herself before she was on her way out of the apartment and to her car, chucking a few water bottles and jumpers on the back seats, silently cursing herself for not making sure that her car was clean but it would have to do since she didn’t have time to do anything about it now.

Ali continued to tap her hands on the steering wheel nervously as she made the short drive to Ashlyn’s house, even turning the radio on to try and distract her, it not helping when a stupid love song comes blaring through the stereo. Huffing Ali turned the radio off once more, not that it would matter since she was already outside of Ashlyn’s apartment building, they really didn’t live that far away from each other.

She sat there for a few minutes, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, “Okay Krieger, get yourself together. Why are you so nervous? This is Ashlyn, your best friend,” 

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Ali didn’t let herself think about it and she was off making her way up the stairs that lead to Ashlyn’s apartment. It didn’t take her long to get there since the apartment wasn’t that far up. Holding her breath as she waited for Ashlyn to answer the door after she knocked, Ali fought the urge to just run away before the blonde even had a chance to answer but she knew it was too late when she heard Nutmeg start to bark.

“Hey,” Ashlyn greeted with a smile once she opened the door, holding Nutmeg back by his collar so he couldn’t jump up at Ali.

Ali’s eyes widened as she took in the sight of the fire fighter in front of her. Ashlyn was dressed in black skinny jeans with black boots and an open collared white shirt, it was casual yet not at the same time.

“H-hey,” Ali stuttered, a smile coming to her face as well, “Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Ashlyn breathed as her eyes wondered down Ali, taking in what she was wearing, “You look beautiful,” She added just as quietly.

Flushing Ali replied, “You look beautiful as well-I mean. Yeah, you look beautiful,” Ali trailed off, the blonde probably wasn’t used to being called beautiful, handsome maybe but to Ali she was both.

Ashlyn chuckled at Ali’s wide-eyed look before excusing herself for a minute and ushered Nutmeg back into her apartment, getting him a fresh bone and a few treats out of her kitchen cupboard so he would stay in one place whilst she left the apartment, knowing he gets rowdy around Ali and would want to see her.

“Let’s go,” She smiled as she appeared back at her door to find Ali standing in the exact spot that she had left her in.

* * *

 

“Is this okay?” Ali wondered, a nervous tint to her voice as they pulled up at the restaurant they had chosen to bring Ashlyn to. It was a small family owned restaurant that Ali had come to many times as a child and in her teenage years, only stopping when she had left for Germany.

“This is perfect,” Ashlyn reassured, giving Ali’s thigh a quick squeeze as they both got out of the brunette’s car.

 Ashlyn looked around as she shut the car door behind her, the restaurant wasn’t that big and she could tell just by looking through the window, with its cosy layout with red checked table clothes.

“Miss Ali!” Ashlyn got broke out of her musings about the restaurant with an accented voice that greeted Ali as they walked through the door.

Ali smiled wide at the elderly man in front of her,” Hello Luca, it’s been awhile,”

The man with a receding hairline returned her smile with one that was just a big, “Yes it has been, how are you?” He placed his hands on Ali’s shoulders to pull her into a quick hug.

“I’m good thank you, what about you and Anna?” Ali wondered as she pulled out of the hug, throwing a quick glance along with a wink behind her to Ashlyn.

“We are marvelous! Oh, just wait until she hears you have been in. Now, what can I do for you tonight?” Luca finally calmed down as he pulled a sheet from the counter next to him.

Reaching behind her to grasp Ashlyn’s arm and pulling her forward she introduced her to Luca, “This is my friend Ashlyn and I was wondering if you had a table for two open? I know I didn’t book and your normally busy at this time of night- “Ali rambled on.

“Nonsense!” Luca dismissed her ramble causing Ashlyn to smirk in amusement, “I have just the table for you,” He continued as he leads the two women to a table near the back of the restaurant, ushering them into the seats when they got there, pulling them out for both girls.

He waited for them to settle before he was off with their drinks requests, bringing them back only minutes later much to the surprise of both the girls.

“So,” Ashlyn started casually as she took a sip from her beer, deciding to only have one like Ali did with her wine since Ali was driving and she wanted it to be fair, “I guess there is a story around this place and you, huh?”

Ali smiled gently as she ran her finger around the rim of her wine glass with a nod, “Yeah, we used to come here a lot when I was younger, me, mom, dad and Kyle. We have these obligatory family meals once a month and this is where we would go, it was my mom’s idea but nobody would argue with it.”

“That sounds nice,” Ashlyn spoke placing her hand on top of the one Ali had resting on the table before pulling away again, “So what’s good here?”

Laughing, Ali tried to ignore what Ashlyn’s hand being on top of hers did to her heart rate, “Everything. But I think you’d like the homemade carbonara, it’s amazing,”

Ashlyn looked through the menu for a few minutes, weighing up her options before she lowered it to look at Ali who was gazing at her with a smile, “And what are you having?”

“The homemade carbonara, “Ali laughed, “It’s what I always have,”

“Then it’s what I’ll have as well,” Ash winked.

* * *

 

 

“Oh my God,” Ashlyn gasped, almost sighing in delight, “This is so good!”

Ali paused with a fork half way to her mouth to chuckle, Ashlyn looked a sight with her head thrown back, eyes closed. Ali knew that she was being overly dramatic on purpose but couldn’t help but be amused but slightly smug at the same time.

“I told you,” Ali sassed but burst out laughing.

Rolling her eyes, Ashlyn sat back up in her chair, where Luca had put them was in a secluded corner so there wasn’t many people around. The table had a red checked table cloth spread across it with a candle in the middle to light up the dimly lit area. If Ashlyn didn’t know any better she would have through this would have been a fantastic date.

“I have a question,” Ashlyn started, ready to ask what exactly this whole dinner was but chickened out when Ali looked up at her, eyes glistening with a smile on her face, she looked so happy,” Uhrm if we were going to tell Kyle about are friendship anytime soon because I think he’s going to figure it out sooner rather than later,” She said instead.

“I don’t know,” Ali sighed, “It’s not that I don’t want to tell him I do but I also don’t at the same time,”

Ash furrowed her eyebrows,” What do you mean?”

Laying her head on her hands that were propped up by her elbows on the table, her food forgotten for the moment as she thought what to say, not that she didn’t know what her answer was to Ashlyn’s question, she did but didn’t know how to word it without it sounding weird.

She knew that this conversation had been coming, she had been having the same thoughts about Kyle, it was only inevitable that he was to find out on his own if they didn’t tell him.

“When we tell Kyle, that mean’s everyone else will find out because you and I both know that he can’t keep his mouth shut and that means that this won’t just be between us anymore,” Ali lifted her head up and gestured between the two of them, “I mean, that’s not the problem there is nothing wrong with us being friends, hell, best friends but there is something special between us and I want that to be just between us and not people getting in out business like I don’t know… Jack would,”

Sitting there in silence Ashlyn pondered over what the police office had just said, Ali was talking like they were more than friends but also dropping the word friend and best friend at the same time. Ashlyn knew exactly what Ali was talking about but for a different reason.

She was in love with Ali and didn’t want anyone to pick up on the connection that they did undeniably have because that was just between them two and Ali was talking like she knew exactly how Ashlyn felt and that confused her so much that her brain hurt. Did Ali feel the same was as she did? Even if not at the same magnitude maybe a little.

“I understand Alex; I feel the same way. We can tell him about us when you want to but maybe not waiting too long to do so, “Ashlyn reached across the table to give Ali’s a hand a squeeze once more.

“I’ll tell him,” Ali told the blonde, “I promise,”

Ashlyn smiled eating the last few bites of her carbonara,” So, you wanna share a desert?” She asked causing Ali’s face to light up.

“Chocolate Cake?” Ali asked with wide hopeful eyes.

“Chocolate cake, “Ash nodded in confirmation, taking in the joy on Ali’s face.

* * *

 

“Thank you for letting me take you out,” Ali commented as they pulled up in front of Ashlyn’s apartment building, the two had a great time, taking and laughing about random stupid things that neither of them would remember in the morning and if they did would wonder why they were even talking about that.

“I’m glad you asked,” Ashlyn unbuckled her seat belt leaning over the console to reach Ali before she could undo hers just like the brunette had done the day before and placed a lingering kiss on her cheek, catching the corner of Ali’s mouth slightly since she turned her head a bit at the last minute.

The two started at each other for a few seconds before Ashlyn pulled away fully, feeling the tension in the air, “I had a great time Ali, we should do this again sometime,” She grinned before hopping out the car.

Ali’s hand shot up to the corner of her mouth where Ashlyn’s lips had touched, rubbing it slightly and looking at her fingers when they came away from her cheek with stains of Ashlyn’s lipstick on them.

Starting her car to head home Ali couldn't wipe the grin off her face.

* * *

 

“Hey HAO?” Ali asked her partner as they were walking down the street, coffee cups in hand on their break from shift.

HAO finished the bite of muffin she had took which she had just purchased from the café before she replied, “Yeah Al?”

“I-I think I went on a date last night,”


	21. Chapter 21

Heather stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, mouth open, coffee held suspended just below it, “You went on a date? You Ali Krieger?” She wondered in shock. It wasn’t like Ali hadn’t dated when they had known each other but it had been awhile as far as she knew.

“I-I mean I think I did,” Ali murmured as she slowed to a stop just in front of HAO who still hadn’t started walking again.

“You think you did? Do you want to explain?” HAO finally broke out of her shock and guided Ali to a bench outside of the Coffee shop that they had just been too.

Ali sat down almost numbly, she didn’t know whether she was nervous about telling Heather about Ashlyn or if she was nervous about fully admitting to herself that she did actually feel something for Ashlyn that was more than just best friends. She had always thought that Ashlyn was good looking but she realizes now that she’s been attracted to her all along.

Ashlyn being a woman doesn’t seem to bother her as much as she thought that it might have, she wasn’t a homophobic person by any means but it was a new thing for her, feeling the way she did towards someone and Ash being not what she was used to being attracted to was different.

“I went out with a…friend. We went to dinner, which I suggested I picked them up and we were both dressed up nicely and we went and had… a candle lit dinner basically,” Ali admitted, she spoke slowly as if she was unsure about what she was talking about.

HAO shifted on the bench so she was facing Ali,” Seems like it really was a date Ali. So who are they?” Heather couldn’t help but let her curiosity get the better of her.

“I-She’s called Ashlyn, you’ve met her before,” Ali stuttered looking down at her legs and picking at the hems of her uniform pants, she could feel Heather’s gaze on the side of her face.

This was the first time she had verbalized her friendship with Ashlyn never mind that she thinks they went on a date the night before and she couldn’t help but feel her heart beat faster in anticipation of her friend’s reaction. HAO was one of the people she was closest to and she knew that the women had nothing against… people who are attracted to girls, they are close with Pinoe after all.

There was a long pause before Ali gained the courage to look up and find Heather looking at her with a soft smile on her face. Reaching over to take Ali’s hand that was clenched on her uniform pants the smile never left Heather's face.

“The firefighter?” She wondered curiously as she squeezed Ali hand in attempt to comfort the women whose face was as pale as a sheet.

Clearing her throat Ali replied, “Yes that’s Ashlyn… Heather I,”

HAO didn’t let Ali continue as she shuffled closer to her to pull the brunette into a hug, “It’s okay Al, you can tell me anything you want to,” She paused, “I’m guessing by the way you say her name that you like her?”

“I do,” Ali confirmed, “I-I think I more than like her,” She spoke slowly.

“I think you do as well,” Heather smiled as she saw the involuntary grin light up as she spoke out what she remembered was the blonde firefighter who had testified in court for them, “So, how did all of this actually happen?”

Ali laughed as she squeezed HAO around the waist, “It’s a long story,”

Checking her watch Heather stood up, pulling Ali with her so they could head back to their squad car, “Well we have twenty minutes of break left, let’s go back to the car so we can talk in private,”

* * *

 

_Can you come over? AK._

Ashlyn frowned at her phone, Ali’s text displayed on the screen, sitting up from where she was slouched on her couch watching TV so she could reply.

_Of course… you okay? AH._

She didn’t wait for Ali to reply before she was getting her stuff ready to head to Ali’s house, putting Nutmeg on his leash so she could take him with her, she knew that the police officer wouldn’t mind since Ali had almost begged her to bring him round before. Her phone tinged with a reply just as she was putting her shoes on, not bothering to get changed out of her UNC t-shirt and Nike shorts that she was wearing.

_I’m okay, I just want some company_ _J AK._

Sending a quick reply of ‘on my way’ Ashlyn hustled down the apartment stairs and to her car, Nutmeg at her heels. It had been almost three weeks since her and Ali had gone out the small Italian restaurant and Ash still couldn’t get it out of her mind whether or not it had been a date.

Since then her and Ali had been even more inseparable than usual, whenever they were not working they could normally be found together, it was more than just their weekly coffee and Friday night bar meet ups.

It didn’t take her long to arrive at Ali’s apartment building, they only lived a few blocks away from each other. She would be lying if she said she wasn’t excited to see Ali even though they had actually seen each other two days previous when they took Nutmeg for a walk.

Making sure she had a tight grip on the husky’s lead, knowing he gets excited when he sees Ali as she knocked on the apartment door, waiting for the brunette to answer.

“Hey,” Ali greeted with a smile as the door swung open. She was dressed similarly to Ashlyn in sweat pants and Ashlyn’s Fire department jumper that she purposely wasn’t asking Ali to give it her back. Her heart started to beat faster at the sight of Ali in the jumper when she didn’t even need to be.

“Hey,” Ashlyn replied as she pulled the police officer into a supposedly quick hug but the lingered for a few seconds, both not wanting to pull back, which is how it had been almost all times that they had hugged recently.

“I brought someone who wanted to see you,” The blonde laughed as she walked into the brunette’s apartment leaving Ali stood staring at where she and Nutmeg had been stood. It took Ash releasing Nutmeg and him barreling into her legs to knock her out of her trance.

Quickly turning round and ushering Nutmeg into the apartment so she could shut the door, stroking the dogs head and greeting him Ali came to stand in front of Ashlyn and just looked at her, shock clouding her face.

“Y-your hair,” Ali stuttered.

“Yeah,” Ash muttered self-consciously smoothing the side of her hair down, she hadn’t told Ali that she had cut her hair yesterday and had been waiting to see the brunette to surprise her but now she was second guessing having the cut all together,” Do you like it?”

There were a few seconds where Ali didn’t reply, her eyes roaming over the fire fighters newly cut hair before she stepped forward, unable to resist running a hand through the surprisingly soft hair.

Ashlyn’s breath hitched as she felt Ali’s hand run though her hair, it took her off guard and she found it hard to keep the emotions of her face about how it made her feel, “I’m going to take that as a yes?”

 Laughing as she pulled back Ali said, “I love it,” before dragging Ashlyn over to her sofa where a cartoon movie was paused on the screen.

“What are we watching?” Ash wondered as she sat down next to Ali, only inches between them, Nutmeg opting to curl up on the floor in front of the TV as he watched the two interact.

“Beauty and the Beast,” She told the newly brunettes as she grasped the remote to press play, “I’m only ten minutes in, but you should know what’s going on since everybody has watched this movie before,”

Ashlyn chuckled sheepishly, “Actually, I haven’t,”

Ali turned to face her with a raised eyebrow, a disproving look on her face, “You’ve never watched Beauty and the Beast?”

Shaking her head Ashlyn rested her hand on Ali’s thigh to give it a squeeze, “Not everyone loves Princesses as much as you apparently do,” She teased.

“Whatever,” Ali rolled her eyes before starting the movie from the beginning, telling the other women that she was going to love it and that it was one of her favorite movies to watch.

Ashlyn didn’t really pay much attention to the movie, which she was sure Ali knew since her attention was focused on the brunette, watching her mouth along to all the songs, a bright relaxed smile on her face, not even missing a beat.

She knew that Ali was going to lecture her after the movie had finished on why she hadn’t been watching but Ash couldn’t for the life of her be bothered about her having to explain why she hadn’t been. She spent most of the movie just looking at Ali, their eyes occasionally meeting before Ali turned to face her suddenly when Tale as Old as Time came playing through the TV speakers.

Raising an eyebrow Ashlyn was about to ask the older women what was wrong but Ali cut her off before she could even open her mouth.

“There’s just something mesmerizing about finding something special in someone you least expect to,” Ali whispered referencing Belle and the Beast on the screen and their romance but at the same time not.

“Ali…. I,” Ashlyn could feel her heart beat quicken and temperature skyrocket as Ali moved closed to her.

“Shhh,” The brunette, shushed her placing a finger on Ashlyn's partly open lips, the hand slipping down to caress her cheek before Ali gathered her courage and pressed their lips together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I missed some things out in the time skip and am planning to add them in flashbacks in the next couple of chapters. If you think this is rushed it will make sense soon.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops. A month later.   
> Been super busy doing History coursework.. I had more to do than I thought.

Ashlyn felt Ali’s lips leave hers almost a heartbeat after they had touched, it wasn’t a long kiss by any means, it was barely even a kiss just merely a touch of lips but to both Ashlyn and Ali it meant a lot. Opening her eyes from where they had automatically fallen shut as soon as the brunette had kissed her, Ash looked at Ali who was still facing her, eyes still closed, mouth hanging open slightly as her eyebrows furrowed.

“Alex….” She started, worried that the police officer would think this had been a mistake.

Ali’s eyes flicked open, she didn’t speak as she gazed at Ashlyn from her spot next to the firefighter, their legs brushing together, something she was beginning to notice even more. She lifted a hand up shakily to ghost over her own lips, like she couldn’t believe what had just happened, before moving her hand to Ashlyn’s lips, running her thumb across Ash’s bottom lip, feeling the soft texture that had just been against her own lips.

“I think I found something I didn’t know I was looking for,” Ali spoke softly, referring to what she had said before their kiss about Beauty and the Beast, “With somebody I didn’t expect to,”

Feeling her breath catch in her throat at Ali’s statement, she reached up taking Ali’s hand that was still resting on her lip into her own, “Me too,” She admitted.

“Really?” Ali wondered, she thought it would have been a long shot that Ashlyn liked her in the same way.

“You sound shocked,” Ashlyn raised an eyebrow, placing a lingering kiss onto Ali’s hand.

“I-I just thought that it was all in my head. I thought you just wanted to be my friend and I don’t know why I just kissed you but I guess I couldn’t help myself and I’m sorry,” She muttered, taking her hand out of Ashlyn’s and running it through her hair shakily.

Smiling in disbelief Ash slid her now free hand so it was now on Ali’s knee, giving it a soft squeeze, “Trust me when I say this Alex, I want a lot more than to be your friend. I thought the exact same way you did but about you,”

“Well I guess I’m probably a little bit late to the party,” Ali chuckled, “I only really realized what I was feeling when we went on that…well I mean it was basically a date,”

Ashlyn couldn’t be happier to hear the words that were coming out of Ali’s mouth, she couldn’t believe that the brunette actually liked her. The agonizing hours that she had spent after their ‘date’ lying in bed thinking about how that could be how they are all the time but It wouldn’t happen. May actually happen now.

“I thought so too... but then I wasn’t sure because I thought there was no way you, Ali Krieger, would ever like me more than a friend,”

Furrowing her eyebrows Ali wondered, “Why would you even think that?”

Ali could not understand why the now brunette would think she wouldn’t like her as more that a friend because she was well, her. It was a ridiculous statement that Ali couldn’t get her head round.

“Well,” Ashlyn rubbed at her face, her nerves calming slightly when she saw Ali gazing at her waiting intently for her answer, “Have you seen you? You have men practically drooling after you, especially Jack. And I’m just a woman, which is one of the main reasons because I thought you were straight, who is basically married to her job and doesn’t-“Ashlyn’s rambling got cut off by Ali’s lips on hers once more, her eyes once again automatically falling shut.

It was a short kiss just like their other one had been but this one seemed different, there was a lot more certainty and confidence behind the kiss on Ali’s side as their lips were pressed together a lot harder than the soft graze it had been before.

“What was that for?” Ash breathed once Ali moved her lips from hers, their foreheads resting on each other for a split second before Ali pulled away completely.

“You wouldn’t shut up,” Ali chuckled before turning serious, “First of all, Jack’s an asshole who should have learnt by now that I am not at all interested in him but for some reason he can’t seem to get it in his head,”

“Also, I don’t care that your practically married to you job, you do know you’re talking to a police officer right? And about you being a woman… well that is new to me and it may take me a while to be out and open in the public but I’ve come to realize these past couple of months that it’s not someone’s gender that matter’s when it comes to lo-liking someone, it’s who they are inside that matter’s not the outside,”

“God that was cheesy but It’s true,” Ali laughed, “I don’t blame you if you don’t want to do this though. I-I know I’m kind of messed up, I know that. So, I guess it’s up to you,”

Ashlyn let out a breath, she was still slightly in shock, not expecting this when Ali asked her to come round, “You’re not messed up Alex,” She stopped when she saw the disbelief on Ali’s face.

“No no, you listen to me, you are not messed up,” She grasped Ali’s face in her hands, thumbs stroking her cheeks, “And I would like to try this,”

“Really?”

“Really,” Ashlyn replied, her heart breaking a little when she saw the tears welled up in Ali’s eyes.  She hated how insecure and withdrawn Kurt had made Ali and even though the old Ali she didn’t know was shining through the brick wall she had surrounded herself with, the effect of Kurt was still obvious on the brunette.

Reaching forward this time she was the one to start the kiss and it was a lot longer and more passionate that the others they had exchanged, she felt Ali’s hand go to the back of the neck, fiddling with the hair at the base.

Pulling away, her eyes flickering to Ali’s slightly swollen lips and then to her eyes, she commented, “It’s the hair isn’t it? You just couldn’t resist?”

Watching Ali’s head be thrown back as laughter exploded from her mouth Ashlyn couldn’t help but grin. She couldn’t believe that this was happening.

* * *

 

The next day Ali was riding in the police cruiser with Heather driving, they had been on patrol for about an hour and a half, Ali the whole time trying to psych herself up to tell Heather what had happened between her and Ashlyn the day before.

“I kissed her,” Ali finally blurted out, causing HAO to swerve the car slightly.

“Holy Shit Kriegs, are you trying to make me crash, I’m a police officer I have to set a good example,” HAO exclaimed in shock, huffing.

Ali smiled sheepishly at her partner, “I’m sorry,”

There were a few minutes of silence where Heather gathered her bearings and Ali wasn’t really sure how to continue the conversation.

“Well, I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“Y-you’re not?” Ali wondered, this time her being the one in shock at her friend’s admission.

Heather laughed, “I only knew it was a matter of time you admitted to yourself that you liked her after how you talked about her. So what happened?”

“I-She kissed me back,” Ali blushed.

After she and Ashlyn had admitted to each other about wanting to try whatever it was between them nothing else really happened. They had watched the rest of the movie together, Ashlyn leaving soon after, giving her a swift peck before she left.

“So, you do like her? And I assume she likes you as well by the blush on your face,”

Ali rubbed a hand over her face as if it would make the redness disappear, “Yes, it seems that way,” at Heather’s confused look Ali elaborated on what she meant, “What if she is just saying she likes me because she feels sorry for me?”

“Why would she feel sorry for you Kriegs? I’m sure she likes you and if she doesn’t I’ll kick her ass no matter how much of a muscular firefighter she is,” HAO told her best friend, smiling when Ali gave out the laugh she was waiting for. She had a feeling that this firefighter she had not met yet did like her friend, and she had to get Ali to realize that.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have some important exams coming up and I've been focusing on that and my application to university.
> 
> I managed to find some time to write this, it's not long but I hope you enjoy it. Sorry for disappearing on you all.

Ali woke up with a gasp, an act that was normal for her, the familiar feeling of her heart pounding in her chest, almost like it was trying to burst out. Placing her hand on top of her heart in an attempt to slow the beating down she reached across with her free hand to check the time on her phone. 3:06 AM.

She knew she wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep, the images flickering through her head at a non-stop pace.  She hated that he still affected her like this, that he still had some type of control over her.

Sitting up on the edge of her bed she rubbed at her stinging eyes, feeling her heartbeat slow down. Sighing she took another glance at the time on her phone before flicking her contacts open, pressing the now familiar number before she could second guess what she was doing.

Ali bit her lip knowing that it was very early in the morning and that she would probably be waking Ash up. There was a possibility that the firefighter was still awake since she was quite the night owl and Ali knew that she was on a night shift later on.

“Hello?” A groggy voice broke Ali from her thoughts.

“Ash- I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called you,” Ali rambled on quickly.

There was some rustling from the other side of the phone, “Alex?” Ashlyn questioned after a few seconds of silence, “Why are you ringing so late? Is there something wrong,”

“I-I had a nightmare and I guess I just wanted to hear your voice,”

Ali could hear more rustling as she waited for a reply, “A nightmare? Are you okay?”

Rubbing at her arms Ali replied, “I’m not sure,”

“Okay well,” There was more rustling, “Me and Nutmeg are going to come over, okay? To keep you company,”

“W-wait Ash! I didn’t ring you for that, I shouldn’t have rung you at all,”

“No!” Ashlyn protested, “I’m really glad you rung me and I want to be there for you, physically and not just over the phone,”

Nodding Ali felt her heartbeat start to calm even more, feeling stupid when she realized Ashlyn couldn’t see her nodding. She really had a habit of doing that.

“Thank you,” She breathed out sincerely, smiling to herself when she heard the rattle of Nutmegs lead.

“No need to thank me, we won’t be long,” With that Ashlyn hung up leaving Ali to pull her phone back and stare at her screen saver which was her and Kyle.

It had been two weeks since she had shared those kisses with Ashlyn, after admitting their feelings for each other they had gone back to normal. Completely the same. It wasn’t that Ali was disappointed, which she was slightly since Ashlyn seemed to be walking on eggshells around her.

The newly brunette had even limited their physical contact. Ali could understand why Ash was doing this, she wanted to make sure she was fully ready to start getting into something with the firefighter. Which Ali was, but she still had to be careful with her heart, even if she had admitted to herself that it already belonged to the firefighter.

She knew that she was in love with Ashlyn. She was starting to realize that it wasn’t starting to creep up on her, it had been there all along. She wasn’t one to believe in love at first sight and she was sure this wasn’t what that was. But the connection between the two of them had been there all along. That she couldn’t deny.

It was obvious to her, someone that cared about her appearance greatly, that she felt comfortable enough around Ashlyn to not bother what she looked like. She even turned up at her house looking horrible and now she definitely wasn’t looking her best. But she didn’t care.

A firm knock on her door broke her from her thoughts, she knew it wouldn’t have taken Ashlyn long to get to her place since it was only around the corner but she was surprised to find that twenty minutes had passed since her in the moment phone call.

 Pulling the hem of her sleep shorts down as she stood up, Ali headed towards the door to let Ashlyn in.

“Hey,” Ali greeted when she pulled the door open to find Ashlyn standing there with Nutmeg, his tail wagging happily, in one hand and a paper bag in the other.

“Hey,” Ashlyn smiled back, not waiting to be invited in before she took a step around Ali, letting Nutmeg of her lead who went straight to Ali jumping up at her whilst Ali scratched behind his ears, cooing at him.

Placing the paper bag on Ali’s coffee table, Ashlyn strode over to the two, instantly wrapping her arms around the police officer, feeling the brunette burrow her face into her chest and return the hug tightly.

“You feeling okay?” Ashlyn breathed, her breath fanning over the top of Ali’s head.

Ali swallowed before she replied, deciding to be truthful, “I feel better now that you’re here,”

Ashlyn tightened her arms around Ali as she stroked down her back, placing a so soft kiss on her head that Ali thought that she had she had imagined it.

Pulling back Ali looked up into Ashlyn face, holding back a giggle at her wild bed head, “thank you for coming, I’m sorry about ringing you,”

“Hey,” Ashlyn’s arms came up so her hands could rest on Ali’s face, “I’m glad you called, I’ve told you before that you can always talk to me. Always. No matter what time of the day it is or wherever I may be. You will always have me,”

Ali could feel her heart start to race but not in the way it had earlier that night. Looking into Ashlyn’s compassionate eyes she couldn’t help but to surge up and place a soft but meaningful kiss on her lips. Leaning back to find Ashlyn looking at her with half lidded eyes.

“I brought gummy worms,” Ashlyn spoke after a few seconds of them just staring at each other, as if they were trying to memorize the look on each of their faces.

Eye’s crinkling in a smile, Ali left out a small laugh,” Gummy worms?” She teased.

Rolling her eyes Ashlyn unwrapped her arms from around Ali as she pulled the police officer across the room to her sofa.

“Yes, gummy worms, my grandma used to buy them for me when I was feeling sad, and it comforted me and I thought you may want some,” Ashlyn replied, now feeling shy as she sat down on the sofa, brown bag in hand and Nutmeg curling up next to her feet.

Ali’s heart swelled at her thoughtful nature, “Well then, let’s eat some gummy worms,” She stated as she sat down right next to Ashlyn, the side of their bodies touching before taking the brown bag from her.

Routing in it to find the gummy bears, seeing some Gatorade and a chocolate bar as well she finally ripped into the packet. Offering one to Ashlyn before she dove in for herself. She would be lying if she said she didn’t love gummy worms as a child.

Resting her head in Ashlyn’s shoulder while she chewed, she slowly moved her hand so it was brushing against the firefighters before taking a deep breath and linking their hands together. She smiled when she felt Ashlyn squeeze her hand before starting to run smoothing circles on Ali’s hand with her thumb.

This is exactly what she needed, Ali smiled to herself.


	24. Chapter 24

Ashlyn woke up with a pain in her neck and a pressure on the chest. Blinking for a few seconds she opened her eyes fully to take in her surroundings.  
  
She was in Ali apartment, Nutmeg still curled up at the foot of the sofa, Ali herself sprawled across the firefighters chest. It was starting to become a regular thing, the two of them falling asleep on the sofa.  
  
Lifting her arm up slowly in an effort not to disturb Ali, Ashlyn glanced at her watch to see it was almost half nine. She was glad that since it was Sunday, and Ali didn't have the weekend shift this week, that the brunette was not required at work.  
  
She felt Ali shift on her, trying not to flinch at the cold hand that had made its way into the back of her black t-shirt when Ali had moved. Taking a glance down for the first time since she woke up Ashlyn couldn't help but smile.  
  
Ali's mouth was hanging open slightly as soft snores came from her. Her already messy bun was falling out even more into her face. Her chest was rising and falling calmly and she had a peaceful look on her face.  
  
Ashlyn was glad that Ali was seemingly sleeping peacefully, she knew that the brunette struggled with nightmares she suffered from most nights. She knew it was due to Kurt and what he had done to this beautiful woman who was currently sleeping on her. Ali didn't like to talk about what happened to her and Ashlyn was okay with that because whenever Ali wanted or even needed to talk she would. The firefighter was okay with just being there for the brunette when she needed her.  
  
She was so in love with Ali. She was so in love with her that she didn't know what to do anymore. Ever since they had admitted to each other they did have some type of feelings for the other and those kisses they had shared, Ashlyn has taken a step back from whatever it was that was developing between them.  
  
She wasn't sure Ali was ready for something to happen between them but then they had shared a kiss last night, or rather earlier this morning, once that Ali initiated.  
  
A soft whining broke Ashlyn from her thoughts as she turned to find Nutmeg sat on the floor wagging his tail. He must have sensed that she was awake.  
  
'Hey buddy," She spoke quietly, trying her best to not wake up the sleeping brunette.  
  
Nutmeg just tilted his head at her, "You wanna go out, huh?"  
  
"Just wait a few more miners buddy and then I can take you out, just let me get up without waking sleeping beauty" She joked, making a squealing noise when the hand that was still under her t-shirt pinched her waist.  
  
"I heard that," A sleepy voice spoke up, startling Ashlyn.  
  
"You're awake!"  
  
Ali chuckled hearing the embarrassment in Ashlyn's voice. She had been awake for a few minuets now, having been woken up by Ashlyn's shuffling around. It always warned her heart and amused her greatly when she heard Ash talk to Nutmeg like he could talk back.  
  
"Yeah, I've been awake for a few minuets now," Ali raised an eyebrow, looking up at Ashlyn, aware that she was still lying practically on top of the newly brunette woman.  
  
Ashlyn was at a loss at what to say, the embarrassment has quickly worn away when she had glanced down to find Ali gazing up at her. Even after just waking up the police officer looked beautiful and she couldn't help but tell her that.  
  
"You look beautiful," she blurted out before she could second guess herself, "Sleeping beauty," she added teasingly, hoping to not put any pressure on Ali.  
  
Ali smiled, rather shyly, up at Ashlyn. Seeing in her eyes that she meant what she had said. Leaning up so she was hovering over Ashlyn's face, her hand braced in the bare skin of Ashlyn hip beneath her T-shirt.  
  
"Thank you," she spoke sincerely, placing a chaste kiss on the firefighters cheek before getting up from her position on top of her and turning to Nutmeg who was now stood up, wagging his tail excitedly.  
  
"Good morning Nutmeg," She greeted, kneeling down on the floor so she could stroke the puppy more effectively, letting out a laugh when he started to lick her face.  
  
Ashlyn sat up on the sofa, grinning at the sound of Ali's laugh, "Hey, I'm going to take him out for a walk, I can come back afterwards,"  
  
"No," Ali said, quickly adding on, "we'll all go together," When she saw Ashlyn's face fall, the short haired women thinking Ali didn't want her to come back.  
  
"That's good with me," The firefighter smiled, she was glad she hadn't just come out last night in her sleep shorts and vest top but had rather taken the time to put on some sweats and a black t-shirt.  
  
"Wait Al," She stopped the brunette who was about to make her way to her room in order to get changed, "Can I borrow a jumper or a coat or something? I forgot one last night,"  
  
"Sure, you can come in and pick one,"  
  
Ashlyn rose from the sofa, patting Nutmeg on the head as she passed him, thankful that he was well trained and didn't seem to follow her. She had never been into Ali's bedroom before and walking into it she could tell it was just very Ali with the colour schemes and the throw pillows on the floor next to her bed which quite obviously we're decorative pillows.  
  
"They're just in there, you can pick anyone," Ali gestured to her closet.  
  
Flicking through the clothes in Ali's closet, her fingers lingering on her police uniform, Ashlyn came across her own Fire Department hoodie with a smile.  
  
"Not that one," A shy voice came from behind her, spinning round Ashlyn found Ali sat on the side of her bed smiling sheepishly.  
  
"But it's mine," Ash smiled teasingly.  
  
Fiddling with her hands Ali spoke confidently, "And now it's mine.... It smells like you and I don't know, kinda comforts me," She added hesitantly.  
  
Turning back to the closet and smiling to herself Ashlyn pulled the hoodie of the hanger before walking over to Ali and sitting next to her on the bed.  
  
"I'll tell you what, I wear this today, and then before I leave I can give it you back and then it will smell like me even more," She smiled charmingly but seriously.  
  
There was a pause where Ali just looked at the smiling woman beside her, "o-okay,"  
  
"Great," Ashlyn grinned, " I'll leave you to get dressed," And with that she walked out of Ali's bedroom, leaving the police officer to stare after her.

* * *

  
  
"This is where we first met, do you remember?" Ali questioned as she and Ashlyn walked Nutmeg around the park, the puppy running around on the grass in front of the bench they were sat on.  
  
"How could I forget, I thought I was going to get arrested," Ash joked as she nudged Ali with her shoulder.  
  
"You were not going to get arrested," Ali rolled her eyes.  
  
Turning so that she could see Ali even more, Ashlyn casually swung her arm across the back of the metal bench as she spoke, "You know, I recognized you, but I just couldn't place from where until I saw your name tag. Kyle talked about you all the time, that much that I felt I knew you already. But I didn’t and I’m so glad that you let me get to know you, even though it’s only been a few months I feel like I’ve known you for all my life,”

Ali smiled softly, “I feel the same way Ash,”

Ashlyn leaned her body so her face was hovering near Ali’s as she swallowed, “Can I..can I kiss you?”

“You don’t need to ask for permission whenever you want to kiss me,” Ali breathed as Ashlyn’ face came even closer, watching as the firefighter nodded slightly before bringing their lips together.

The kiss was a lot longer than the others that they had shared, filled with emotion and longing. It was then that the two of them realized what they both wanted and they didn’t want to wait for that.

“Go on a date with me?” Ashlyn questioned once they had pulled away.

“I’d love to,” Ali smiled, placing her arms around Ashlyn’s neck and bringing their lips back together.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been awhile. Tell me what you guys think, a bit of action for ya!

 

 

Ali gripped the steering wheel of the police car as she worked up the courage to tell HAO what had happened that weekend. She glanced over at her friends once again to find her looking back at her with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"Heather...," Ali started, a slight nervous tone to her voice.  
  
"Ali," HAO responded with a raised eyebrow.  
  
Clearing her throat, not sure why she was so nervous since HAO was the only one that she had confided in about Ashlyn. She had thought about telling Kyle about what was happening between her and Ashlyn but that wasn’t just her choice since he and Ashlyn did work together and were essentially friends.

“So, Ashlyn asked me out on a date,” She spoke calmly, jumping slightly when there was a squeal from the seat next to her, she’s glad that she is the one driving as HAO would probably have slammed on.

Ali pulled the cruiser to a stop at the traffic lights, her eyes watching the lights for them to turn green, trying to ignore the way Heather was looking at her with a smug grin on her face.

“Will you stop,” Ali chuckled, unable to hold in her smile as she started driving again, making eye contact with one of her closest friend, knowing by the look in her eyes that she could trust her completely. Not that she had doubted it before it was just reassuring to see.

HAO just clucked her tongue the smug grin not leaving her face, “Well I hate to tell you I told you so Al, but I told you she did like you,”

Feeling her smile grow wider Ali couldn’t help but shake her head in disbelief. She was still in some type of shock because of the events of the past couple of months. She was finally ready to move on from what Kurt had done to her, which is what she hoped would happen when she came back home, she came back to heal.

She defiantly didn’t expect the courage and love she needed to gather the courage to find the strength to heal would come from a tattooed firefighter called Ashlyn Harris but somehow it had happened and she had fallen in love along the way. She was ready to admit that to herself but not to Ashlyn, maybe one day soon but not right now.

“What’s wrong Ali?” Heather wondered seeing her friend grow silent with a pensive look on her face.

“I’m nervous,” The brunette admitted, “I think I downplayed how much I actually like her,”

Heather wasn’t surprised at Ali’s admission, she’s seen the look on her face and in her eyes whenever she talked about Ashlyn and recently that has been a lot, HAO felt like she knew the firefighter even though she had never met her.

“I know,” Heather replied simply alluding to her previous knowledge of Ali downplaying her feelings for Ashlyn, “Why are you nervous?”

“I don’t know, I think it’s a good nervousness. Like I can’t believe that this is happening, that I’m going on a date with Ashlyn,”

“Well you better believe it because it’s happening Kriegs. And I don’t know why you are so surprised as well this is technically you’re third date I mean you should count the game you two went to and then also the dinner you took her too which was so a date,”

Ali chuckled, imagining the times she had sat wondering whether when she took Ashlyn out for dinner, if it was a date or not. Opening her mouth to respond to her friend the radio sprung to life causing Ali’s hand to shoot forward to turn it up so they would not miss anything.

“Well duty calls,”

 

* * *

 

 Ashlyn laughed as she watched Kyle pull exaggerated poses in front of the mirrors in the work out room at the firehouse, he had been working out, as many of them did to pass the time, until Lady Gaga came playing over the stereo. The older man had dropped his weights and immediately started singing and dancing.

“Work it, girl,” Ashlyn called, clapping her hands together as she laughed along with two other of the boys, who were in the work out room with them. It was a place they frequently visited, it being a quick way to pass time between calls and a good way to keep in shape, which was a big requirement in their line of work.

Tyler, one of the guys, held his phone up to record Kyle shimmering his butt to them as he watched himself in the mirror, “I think he’s the only person I’ve seen get this way over a singer,” He commented with a gruff chuckle.

“Don’t let him hear you say that, he may think you’re insulting his Queen,” Ashlyn mock whispered, knowing full well that Kyle could hear them over the music.

Swinging around with a dramatic flair, hips landing on his hips Kyle glared at the three-other people in the room, “I can hear you,” He spoke, putting an angry look on his face, eyes flickering between them before smiling.

“You know me and my sister, in high school, used to make up dance routines to music like this, how do you think I got this perfect at dancing,” He winked.

Ashlyn could feel her eyes widening to almost double their original size as well as a flush coming up her neck, something she was hoping the other three men didn’t notice. What Kyle had said had come as a shock to her and she fully intended to grill the brunette about said dance routines but at this moment she couldn’t get the image of Ali dancing like Kyle was a moment ago out of her head.

“Are you serious?” She manged to get out.

Kyle nodded enthusiastically, “I knew every time you’ve seen her she’s been the stoic cop in her neatly pressed uniform but boy, back in the day could we mix up at good dance routine,”

“I-I have a hard time imagining it,”

“I don’t,” George, burst in laughing, he was one of the veterans at the firehouse who had been there for a long time so he must know Ali as well from when she had been stopping by when she was in the academy.

Rubbing and the back of her neck, Ashlyn sighed quietly listening to Kyle, Tyler and George laugh and have a conversation that she wasn’t really listening to. She knew Kyle didn’t know that his comment would stare up the feeling of guilt in Ashlyn gut but it did. Her and Ali were doing nothing wrong by not telling Kyle about whatever was going on between them since they were still figuring out what they actually are but that they hadn’t told Kyle about them back when they were just friends.  Or have they ever been just friends?

The blare of the alarm broke Ashlyn out of her thoughts as she listened intently to see if truck was needed, jumping up along with Kyle and George when she heard they were needed at the scene, Tyler following a few seconds later when he heard Squad were also needed.

* * *

 

Ashlyn could start to feel her adrenaline kick in like it did every time she heard those familiar alarms, she was ready to get out there and save some lives. She had to be.

 Jumping out of the fire truck while making sure her helmet was securely clipped on Ashlyn surveyed her surrounding to see what they had to deal with. A major multi-car road collision as it seemed, she could see one car on its back, another crashed into a fire hydrant on the side walk, there was chaos everywhere.

“Okay, Kyle Jack, you take the car on the sidewalk, “She rattled off instructions to her men, making sure they were where they were needed while also leaving room for Squad to do their jobs which they were currently doing on the overturned car.

“My wife!” A voice suddenly shouted, causing Ashlyn and George, who was stills stood with her surveying, to spin around. Seeing a man, blood running down the side of his face, eyes wide, gesturing widely with his arms.

Rushing forward Ashlyn jogged to where the man was stood, seeing the terror in his face, “Where is she sir,”

The man moved as quickly as he could, wobbling a few times as he led her and George over to a car just left of the main crash, “She’s stuck and can’t get out, please help her, she’s pregnant,”

Ashlyn nodded, shouting over her shoulder at George to get the man some medical attention and to grab the claws from the truck as she made her way over to the car that was smoking at the bonnet, talking a note to keep an eye on that as she made her way over the passenger’s side of the car where she could see a young woman slumped against the window.

First she went around to the passenger’s side to see if she could jimmy the door open, but with no luck. She didn’t want to break the glass in case it injured the woman even more than she already was and she didn’t know how much that was. Taking another quick glance at the engine and seeing the smoke turn darker she knew she didn’t have that much time.

Jogging around to where the man had left the opposite car door open when he had gone for help Ashlyn slid into the seat immediately placing her hand on the women’s neck, sighing in relief when she both felt her pulse and heard a small groan from her mouth, even though it meant that she was hurting at least she was conscious.

“Ma’am?” Ash asked as the women, glancing outside to see if she could see any of the paramedics, sighing when she couldn’t, “Can you hear me?”

“Y-yeah,” A weak voice spoke.

“Can you tell me your name?” She spoke in a soothing voice, looking around the foot of the car to see where she was stuck, noticing that her legs were being restrained by the dashboard.

The women held up a hand and put it back down again like she didn’t know what she was doing, “Julia,” She replied, “Do you know where Mike is? Where’s my husband? Oh my God my baby, is it okay?” The women, now identified as Julia started to panic, talking fast.

Ashlyn ran a gloved hand over Julia’s head in order to sooth her slightly, “Calm down Julia, we’re going to get you out of here in just a few moments, your husband is fine he’s just back there and we’re gonna check you out once we get you out of here, okay?”

Julia only got a chance to nod when George came racing back with the claws shouting Ashlyn’s name, ‘Harris!”

Grasping the claws from the older mans she went to work on trying to free the woman from where she was stuck, her eyes catching something giving her only a few split seconds to throw herself over Julia as the front of the car burst into flames. She could hear shouts from outside the car both from who she assumed to be the husband and George as he tackled the fire. Her focus was to keep the now sobbing Julia covered as best she could, that was after all her job.

“You okay Lieutenant? It’s been cleared up,” She heard George shout from outside.

“All good George! Get Alex over here!” She finally removed herself from over Julia, her eyes quickly scanning the redheaded woman, “You okay?”

Julia nodded with a sob, her hands holding onto Ashlyn’s jacket tightly as she whispered her thanks repeatedly. Ashlyn grasped the woman’s wrists gently as she moved her hands, needing to be able to move to get her out.

“How’s she doing Ash?” She heard Alex’s raspy voice echo into the car, turning slightly to see the paramedic stood at the open car door next to her.

“She’s doing okay but there isn’t enough room for you to come in here while I get her out and she’s pregnant so we need to get her out now,”

“Okay, I’m going to pass you a collar, that’s the most important thing now while you get her out, to stabilize her neck and back, after she’s out I’ll take her straight to the hospital,”

Ashlyn nodded, moving over to place the collar securely around Julia’s neck, making sure it was fastened tightly.

“You ready?” She asked.

* * *

 

 

Ali pulled up to their call to find chaos, cars everywhere along with a swarm of fire fighters. Getting out of her car she got a glance at the crest and number on one of the firefighter’s uniform gulping when she saw it was Ashlyn and Kyle’s house. She knew they both, as well as her had a dangerous job but she didn’t like to think about it and they normally didn’t cross paths while on duty, this must just be one of those rare occasions.

“Where should we start,” Ali wondered out loud

“Maybe there,” Heather gestured to where a man Ali identified as George and a paramedic were carrying a woman on a back bored over to one of the ambulances, Ashlyn and a man Ali didn’t recognise walking beside them.

Nodding the two women set of to where the other group was now stood around the back of the ambulance, “Lieutenant,” Ali called out formally when they reached the group, noticing how Ashlyn’s shoulders tensed as she recognized the voice.

Ali’s breath caught in her throat when Ashlyn turned around, her face red and sweaty with dirt smeared across her left cheek but Ali was left breathless at how stunning Ashlyn looked in this moment, doing what just felt natural to her.

“How can we help you Officers,” The gentle voice of Ali’s dreams spoke, knocking her out of her thoughts and remind her that she had a job she needed to do.

“We were wondering if you knew what happened,” Heather started to speak before the man who had been previously talking to the woman now on the stretcher let out a roar startling all of them.

“YOU!” He shouted, surging forward to where a man, on a stretcher, was being escorted to one of the other ambulances that had been called to the scene, “THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, YOU RAN INTO US, YOU COULD HAVE KILLED US,”

Ali jogged forward so she was in front of the man, Heather close behind her in order to stop him from advancing any more than he already had to the man that was laid on the stretcher.

“Sir,” Ali tried but got cut off when the man shoved her, hard. She knew he didn’t mean it so she wasn’t going to write him up for assault but if anything else happened she would have to.  Placing her hands on the man’s wide chest to stop him from moving Ali was about to speak up once more when another voice, a familiar one, cut her off.

“Hey! Mike!” Ashlyn’s voice was sharp unlike what Ali had ever heard it as, “Don’t do this,” She paced her hand on the man, Mike, shoulder as her eyes locked reassuringly with Ali’s

“Think of your wife, she’s pregnant Mike, if you do something stupid like I think you are going to do you could get fined or even arrested, I mean you’ve already pushed this police office. Think of her and your baby,” Ashlyn spoke reassuringly to the man trying to calm him down, doing it successfully when he burst into tears and fell to the ground.

* * *

 

“Al-Officer Krieger,” Ashlyn called after Ali who was walking to the patrol car almost an hour later, waving Heather on to continue without her.

“Hey Ash,” Ali responded quietly taking a quick look around to make sure nobody was around them which they weren’t except Heather who was quite obviously now starting at them throw the windshield of the police cruiser.

“You okay?” Ashlyn questioned in worry, placing her hand softly on Ali’s bicep.

Ali smiled softly, placing her hand on Ashlyn’s for a few seconds, “I’m fine,”

Ashlyn looked like she didn’t believe her as she gave her bicep a quick squeeze before letting go, “How about you come round to my apartment after your shift and I’ll cook us some dinner?” She suggested.

Letting her eyes roam over Ashlyn’s form Ali shook her head, quickly speaking when she noticed the hurt and rejection in Ashlyn’s eyes, “I’ll come over to your apartment but let me cook, you look exhausted and I can bet that you’ve had a busy morning,”

Marvelling at how good Ali can read her she only got change to agree before she heard her name being called by one of her men.

“I’ll see you later,” She smiled with a wink before running off leaving Ali to head to the cruiser with a big smile once she had turned away from where people other than Heather could see her face.

“You two are so into each other, this is gonna be good,” Is all HAO said once she was in the car.

 

 


	26. Chapter 26

Ashlyn practically skipped up the stairs towards her apartment, ignoring her protesting muscles, with a smile on her face. She wasn’t expecting to see Ali at all today and managing to figure out having dinner with her was just a bonus that had made her day.

“Hey buddy!” She excitedly greeted Nutmeg when she had managed to get inside her apartment and shut the door behind her before he could get out, it being the struggle it always is when she decides to leave him at home and not take him to the fire station, “Ali’s coming for dinner so we gotta clean up,”

Taking a quick glance around her apartment Ash winced, she really did need to tidy up. It wasn’t that she was a messy person but being a firefighter meant that sometimes the cleaning got held back and the state of her apartment now was evidence of that. Glancing at her phone Ashlyn worked out she had just over an hour until Ali was due to arrive. She was glad she didn’t have to go food shopping since Ali had texted her telling her she would bring what she needed with her.

Rubbing her hands along her pants Ashlyn hesitated for a moment as she thought of what she needed to do first, clapping her hands together as if trying to get herself to move Ash couldn’t help but stand there and smile to herself.  She was in deep.

* * *

 

Ashlyn bustled to her door as she heard a knock, simultaneously trying to hold a barking Nutmeg back and towel trying her hair. Wrapping the towel around her neck, trying not to think about what her hair must look like now, she opened the door to find Ali stood there, her hair tied back in a bun with two paper grocery bags in her arms.

“Let me get them,” Ashlyn offered, not bothering to wait for a reply before she had grabbed the bags of Ali and taken them to the kitchen, aware of Ali closing the apartment door behind her and was greeting Nutmeg enthusiastically.

Leaning against her kitchen counter her back brushing against the bags she had just placed there Ash couldn’t help but smile at the scene in front of her. Ali was on her knees Nutmeg jumped up on her as he licked her face, her laugh echoing around the apartment.

“Hey,” Ali greeted when Nutmeg had calmed down, with a nose crinkling grin causing Ashlyn’s breath to catch.

“Hey there,” Ashlyn replied with her own matching grin, opening her arms for Ali, desperately hoping that she wasn’t going to get rejected. Even though they both knew that there was obviously something important going on between them they haven’t yet been that physical. It wasn’t just one of them pulling away it was both of them being cautious.

There was no reason for Ashlyn to be worried when Ali headed straight into her arms, her own arms wrapping around the short haired woman’s neck and she burrowed into her chest with a smile. Ashlyn hummed to herself at the feel of Ali in her arms as she rested her own head on the smaller girls.

“How are you Ash?” Ali broke away from the firefighter’s chest to look up into her eyes, she had been worried about her after the events of the day, she knew that it was something that Ashlyn had to do on almost a daily basic but this was the first time she had seen her in action and couldn’t help but be worried. Not that she had a problem with what Ashlyn does, they both have dangerous jobs.

Ashlyn pressed a hand on Ali’s cheek as she slowly stroked her thumb down it, “Me? I should be asking you that, that guy bushed you pretty hard,”

Smiling at the feeling of Ashlyn’s hand on her gave, Ali couldn’t help but turn her head more into the hand, “ I’m fine, it’s something I’m used to. I know he didn’t meant it, he was too focused on the man to probably even realise I was an officer. To be honest I don’t blame him, I can only imagine what he was feeling. I don’t know what I would do if that happened to me and a loved one,”

“Me either,” Ashlyn admitted as she looked into Ali eyes, second guessing herself on whether or not she should kiss Ali or whether she should just leave it until maybe later.

Ashlyn really didn’t need to even be thinking about what to do when Ali leant up and pecked her lips, lingering there as she sighed and tightened her hand on Ashlyn’s neck, feeling like this is the first time all day she had felt as relaxed as this in Ashlyn’s arms.

“So,” Ali giggled slightly as she pulled back,” I like your hair,” The older girl reached up pat the top of Ashlyn’s head.

“Shit,” Ash laughed herself, having totally forgot that she had not properly dried her hair while also mentally patting herself on the back for having placed the wet towel on the back of one of her island chairs or else the little cuddle they had just been embraced in would have been a little awkward and uncomfortable.

“Give me ten minutes to sort this out and I’ll be all yours,”

“No,” Ali spoke as she grabbed Ashlyn’s hand who was in the process of walking away as she pulled her back into her, their sides brushing together, “Leave it, you look cute,”

Raising an eyebrow, Ash moved her body so she was no standing straight in front of Ali, confidence seeping into her, “Aren’t I always cute,” She questioned.

A steady blush came creeping up Ali’s neck and onto her cheeks as she tilted her head to the taller girl, “I mean, you’re okay sometimes,”

“Just okay? That blush seems to say otherwise,” Ash ran a finger down one of Ali’s cheeks as if to emphasis her point.

“Oh wow, you’re on a whole other level today,” Ali spoke, trying not to blush even harder.

“And you’re avoiding the question,” The short haired woman teased.

Ali suddenly smirked, her eyes twinkling causing Ashlyn to swallow as she leant forward, her breath hitting the shell of Ashlyn’s ear, causing a shiver to run down her spine, “I’d say you’re more than just cute,”

Ashlyn’s breath hitched as Ali moved back towards the front of her face, her lips hovering only a breath away from her skin as the brunette came to a stop at her cheek, pressing a soft kiss there, so soft that it felt like it was barely there. Before she moved once again, this time stopping so she was hovered to before Ashlyn’s lips.

“I don’t think it’s just me who’s on a whole different level tonight,” Ashlyn breathed out, trying and failing to sound casual as Ali’s eyes locked on hers, having lifted from where they were looking at her lips.

 “Maybe I’m just starting to realize more,” Ali spoke before she brought their lips together for the second time that night. Any confusion that had sparked in Ashlyn at Ali’s words had been forgotten almost the same second they had been thought as she relished at the feeling of Ali’s soft lips on hers.

Arms snaking around Ali’s waist, Ashlyn brought her closer so they were touching as the kiss continued, getting deeper and more intense by the second, this was something they hadn’t done before and it was making Ashlyn’s heart pound and pulse race as she felt a moan bubbling in her throat, unable to escape before Ali pulled back, a shy smile replacing the smirk that had been placed there before.

“You’re beautiful,” Ashlyn ran her hand down the side of Ali’s face, sensing her nervousness.

“So are you,” Ali replied before she could stop herself, she was surprised at how confident she had been already tonight and felt both nervous and excited about how much of herself she felt like when she was around Ashlyn, “ I should probably get to cooking,” She shifted on her feet.

“Let me help,”


End file.
